OTTAWA, Sept. 12, 2016 – Canadian Wildlife Federation (CWF) CEO and Executive Vice-President Rick Bates has been elected International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Regional Councillor for North America and the Caribbean at World Conservation Congress, an international environmental parliament held every four years that determines the global conservation agenda.
As regional councillor, Bates priorities include coordinating international policy and priorities with national committees, revenue generation and building the constituency for conservation. He will continue his leadership role with CWF, one of Canada’s oldest and largest conservation organizations, while serving on the IUCN council.
“CWF is proud to be one of the global leaders helping to make joint decisions on sustainability in order to ensure healthy wildlife populations and habitat,” says Bates, who has more than 20 years of experience with government and non-governmental environmental organizations.
CWF is a voting member of the IUCN which organizes the World Conservation Congress. Highlights of CWF’s leadership role during the international gathering Sept. 1-10 included:
- Partnering in the launch of a global #NatureForAll movement
- Hosting daily interactive discussions on such issues as marine pollution
- Participating in a global round table discussion on engaging new audiences
“Working together we can ensure that shared solutions and strategies are developed to ensure healthy wildlife populations for the use and enjoyment of all,” adds Bates.
Visit CanadianWildlifeFederation.ca for more information about the World Conservation Congress and CWF’s priorities.
-30-
About the Canadian Wildlife Federation
The Canadian Wildlife Federation is a national not-for-profit charitable organization dedicated to ensuring an appreciation of our natural world and a lasting legacy of healthy wildlife and habitat. By spreading knowledge of human impacts on the environment, developing and delivering educational programs, sponsoring research, promoting the sustainable use of natural resources, recommending policy changes and co-operating with like-minded partners, CWF encourages a future in which Canadians can live in harmony with nature. For more information, visit CanadianWildlifeFederation.ca.
Contacts:
Heather Robison
Media and Community Relations Officer
heatherr@cwf-fcf.org
1-306-540-5302
Backgrounder - International Union for the Conservation of Nature
Created in 1948, IUCN has evolved into the world’s largest and most diverse environmental network of 1,300 member organizations and 16,000 experts. Priorities are species survival, environmental law, protected areas, social and economic policy, ecosystem management as well as education and communication. By facilitating solutions, IUCN provides governments and institutions at all levels with the impetus to achieve universal goals including biodiversity, climate change and sustainable development. Union Members such as CWF are part of a democratic process, voting resolutions which drive the global conservation agenda. They meet every four years at the IUCN World Conservation Congress to set priorities and agree on the Union’s work program.
