REUNION PREPARES FOR SECOND WHALE CONGRESS
(Posted 30th June 2017)
From the 03rd to the 07th of July will the French region of La Réunion host the second edition of the World Congress on the Whale at Bosse. This congress, co-organized by the Réunion Region and the Cétamada association, is the only event in the world devoted entirely to this species. The inscription of the "chemin des baleines" on the World Heritage List by UNESCO , a project supported by the Réunion Region for four years, will also be presented at the congress.
Reunion Island, part of the 34 hotspots of the world’s biodiversity, is on the route taken by the humpback whales that leave the Antarctic Ocean each year for the warm waters of the Indian Ocean during breeding and calving. After a first edition in Madagascar, it is the turn of Reunion to receive the second annual World Congress on Humpback Whales under the sponsorship of Sébastien Folin , which will take place from 3 to 7 July at Stella Matutina museum at Saint-Leu.
Exclusively dedicated to the humpback whale (Megaptera novaeangliae), which is one of the most observed and studied species among marine mammals, the congress aims to bring together researchers, scientists and organizations working in different fields of research. In order to advance research into the protection and conservation of cetaceans. The
- Present research on humpback whales at their feeding sites, breeding sites and during migrations;
- Facilitate meetings between researchers, students, professionals and amateurs;
- Valuing the programs of observations, studies and conservation of humpback whales at local, regional and global levels;
- Encourage scientific studies and conservation efforts for humpback whales.
Also watch the following YouTube clip for added information and better understanding of the topic at hand:
https://youtu.be/0YFJnyS-42w
The inscription of the Whale Trail on the World Heritage List by UNESCO
For the past four years, the Réunion Region has been working on the inscription of the "chemin des baleines" on UNESCO’s World Heritage List. The project, presented at the International Conference of the World Tourism Organization (WTO) in 2013, received the support of UNWTO Secretary-General Dr. Taleb Rifai, the Minister of Ecology, Sustainable Development, Energie Ségolène Royal and Nicolas Hulot, Special Envoy for the Climate of the President of the Republic François Hollande. The approach is based on responsible tourism , combining compliance with regulations, user safety and protection of biodiversity while contributing to the awareness and involvement of visitors.
