I think that this issue is larger than just laying the blame on those who
are doing their best to care for our biodiversity, be it government
departments or non-profit organisations. If they are failing it is not
because of their lack of commitment. It is because despite all of the good
that they are doing, and there are numerous examples of where people are
working hard to research and protect our biodiversity, the impact of
overpopulation and excessive consumption is so all encompassing that it
undermines much of this great work. I don't believe that the problem has
been caused by people being 'locked out' of natural areas and I think that a
comparison with the UK is not productive due to the cultural, historical and
natural differences between the two countries. The restrictions on
accessing areas with threatened species and keeping native animals as pets
is as a result of overpopulation and historical loss of habitat. When I was
a kid I had Green and Golden Bell Frogs, Bearded Dragons and Bluetongues as
pets. This may have helped to increase my love of nature but I also learnt
that it was best for these animals to remain in the wild. People wanting to
have hands on access to wildlife can become a wildlife carer or assist with
bird banding or other fauna survey projects. The NSW National Parks
Association has held community wildlife surveys giving non-scientists a
chance to get up close and personal with our wildlife. It would be good to
increase the general community's interaction with nature but not at all
costs. People, including children, who show an interest in nature can find
many community groups (bird clubs, conservation groups etc.) to join but
membership of most groups has declined with very few young people joining.
I believe that the real issue is that our western culture does not clearly
identify with nature, even though our rampant consumerism does rely on
nature to feed it. I also believe that most Australians do want to conserve
our wildlife but as has been stated earlier, as long as it doesn't impact
negatively on them. There are also people who think that environmental
issues are so complex that they just ignore them and hope that the 'experts'
or the government will look after them. Scientists are often not very good
at relaying their research results to the general public. That is why
scientists like Tim Flannery are so important, while I may not agree with
everything that he states, he is raising the issues and being provocative.
As a grandparent the differences that I see between our children and our
grandchildren is quite stark. Despite that fact that our older
grandchildren have their faces glued to screens much of the time once they
are extracted from the technology they still show a great interest in the
natural world either by experiencing it in bushland areas or in museums.
Our children, while not being actively anti-environment think that
environmentalism is an extreme view held by their parents. It creates much
humour in the family.
While typing this I just heard on ABC Radio that a survey of teenagers
showed that only 31% were concerned about the environment.
Greg
Dr Greg. P. Clancy
Ecologist and Birding-wildlife Guide
PO Box 63 Coutts Crossing NSW 2460
0266493153 0429601960
-----Original Message-----
From: Peter Shute
Sent: Wednesday, December 05, 2012 2:08 PM
To: 'Simon Mustoe' ; ;
Cc:
Subject: Threatened species and the OBP
Simon, you keep referring to access issues. I'm sure there are places I
can't go birding, but apart from private land, I can't think of many, or at
least not many where there are no alternatives. Can you give some examples,
please?
Peter Shute
-----Original Message-----
From:
On Behalf Of
Simon Mustoe
Sent: Wednesday, 5 December 2012 12:29 PM
To: ;
Cc:
Subject: Re: [Birding-Aus] Threatened species and the OBP
By contrast, Australian conservation groups, national park
authorities and others who control land access and access to
wildlife are 20-30 years behind this thinking. It's not to do
with lack of care in the community, it's to do with the
attitude of those who control access.
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