Saemangeum Wetlands Korea (2 Viewers)

[A CHAPLIN]

Hi Folks,

I am glad I have just received this email to show that the fight to save Saemangeum goes on and we are not beaten yet.

Unfortunately as I have told Charlie Moores the timing for the Birdwatch Day is possibly not good, being the weekend after the RSPB's Birdwatch but am hoping it gives you an excuse (as if you real birders need one) to have another day out birding.

Please help if you can.

Thank you for reading

Ann
[font=¹ÙÅÁ]Dear Members,[/font]

[font=¹ÙÅÁ]With three weeks to go now to the Birdwatch Day for Saemangeum (on Saturday, February 4th or Sunday the 5th) http://www.birdskorea.org/worldbwday.asp, a short update.[/font]

[font=¹ÙÅÁ]Most members will already know that Birds Korea has for some time been organizing the Saemangeum Shorebird Monitoring Program (http://www.birdskorea.org/timetoact.asp) to start in April this year, a Program run jointly with some of the region'[/font][font=¹ÙÅÁ]s key shorebird specialists (including Dr. Danny Rogers and Dr. Phil Battley and Australasian Wader Studies Group stalwart Adrian Riegen). At present, probably 8 or 9 international shorebird researchers have stated that they intend to pay their tickets to Korea to participate, while there has also been an offer of back-up overseas GIS support. Here in Korea itself, a series of successful meetings suggests significant and increasing domestic interest in the project [/font]–[font=¹ÙÅÁ] essential if we are to raise awareness and gather data that can be submitted to the courts.[/font]

[font=¹ÙÅÁ]To support the day-to-day running costs of this Program (estimated at a maximum 20 000 USD in 2006) we have already appealed directly to members and on the website for donations. So far, we have received close to 1000 USD, with perhaps an equal amount pledged. We have also applied for a couple of grants (another big chunk of what'[/font][font=¹ÙÅÁ]s needed!), and are very much hoping that still more can be raised through the Birdwatch Day for Saemangeum, a loose and birder-friendly (!) event with three aims: 1) To help us all to communicate more about Saemangeum; 2) To help our members and concerned birders actually DO something for Saemangeum (something several members asked us for during the past months); and 3) To help us raise more funds![/font]

[font=¹ÙÅÁ]Details of this Birdwatch Day are on the website, and really, nothing could be simpler. Go birding for a few hours or for the day wherever you happen to be anywhere in the world, and let people (and our website) know that you are birding for Saemangeum. If you can, ask friends for donations, either for species seen or just as a total, and mail this to our Saemangeum fund [/font]–[font=¹ÙÅÁ] a fund dedicated 100% to use in shorebird and Saemangeum conservation. We expect the event will be very small this year, but there will be people birding for Saemangeum in South Korea, in the UK and we hope in the US (and maybe in Japan, in Germany, in Switzerland, in Australia![/font][font=¹ÙÅÁ]). [/font]

[font=¹ÙÅÁ]With the Saemangeum Monitoring Program to be repeated in future years, we very much hope that this event will grow [/font]–[font=¹ÙÅÁ] and help all of us to show our concern for the birds - [/font][font=¹ÙÅÁ]by birding![/font]


Thanks as ever for your support,



Nial and Charlie Moores, Park Meena, Kim Su Kyung
Birds Korea: The national and international network dedicated to the conservation
of birds and their habitats.

http://www.birdskorea.org/

 

[Edward woodwood]

Well, i hope to go there one day in the not too distant future and meet Nial and score some spoonies. If Saemangeum is still there. During my stint editing at OBC i dealt with several pieces on this great places and like Gurney's Pitta, i hope something can be done in time.

I for one will be doing it

nothing much but just a full day out and i'll get a few donations from work etc...

might just make your days birding more interesting

 

[A CHAPLIN]

Thanks Tim,

If people care enough and try hard enough I am sure Saemangeum can remain as it is for ever for the birds, hopefully more birdwatching tours etc. would raise more income for the country than the reclamation project.

We need more places for birds not less, surely as here they will realise that wetlands help prevent floods. Help me out Tim you know I am not good with the words?

Thanks for your help and I look forward to seeing your photos of the Spoonies.

Ann :clap: :egghead:

 

[Edward woodwood]

Thanks Tim,

Help me out Tim you know I am not good with the words?

don't be silly

your committment and enthusiasm re this case and Malta in particular put the vast majority to shame. And both come over with plenty of clarity.
It is good to see some real feeling. It seems to be going out of fashion.

Tim

 

[A CHAPLIN]

Thanks Tim again,

Will you tell my co workers that, they think I spend too much time "worrying" about things I can do nothing about "nothing to do with you" etc. I should be enjoying myself watching celebrity rubbish. I was told yesterday to switch on and lighten up when I said I didn't watch tv.

At least I feel I am do something that I care about and thanks, look at the friends I have made on BF.

Sorry Mods off thread, but please if we all tried a bit harder look what we could achieve.

Thanks

Ann :t:

 

[A CHAPLIN]

Hi Folks,

I am shamelessly bumping this up. Is anyone apart from Tim taking part? I will admit I am not going out but have sent my donation. I know many of you will be out birding anyway so please try and help raise funds however small. Think of the acorn, a small seed growing into a mighty oak.

The birds need places like Saemangeum to rest and feed up on migration apart from the ones that live there including the Spooneys. I read somewhere "the birds will go somewhere else" but where, who will guide l them and when there are no wild places left, what then?

Ann :flyaway: Where to? :-C