27th session of ICC-MA. 2015 Paris

In Paris, at the headquarters of UNESCO, June 9, 2015, the 27th Session of the International Coordinating Council of UNESCO's MAB (ICC) began its work. President of the UNESCO MAB Dr. Sergio Guevara (Mexico), opened the meeting. Session was working from 8 to 12 June and discussed wide range of questions, foremost among which are the MAB strategy for the next 10 years (2015-2025), the development of the Action Plan MAB (2016-2025) and reviewing national applications for Biosphere Reserves. June 9 the application of the Republic of Kazakhstan - Biosphere Reserve Aksu-Zhabagly was examined. International status for Kazakhstan Nature Reserve "Aksu-Zhabagly", which is now included in the World Network of Biosphere Reserves of UNESCO was approved by the decision of the 27th session of the ICC.

In Kazakhstan, this is the fifth UNESCO Biosphere Reserve along with BRs Korgalzhyn (2012), Alakol (2013), Katon-Karagay (2014), Akzhayik (2014). Giving the international UNESCO Biosphere status for five reserves of Kazakhstan for last 4 years shows UNESCO's recognition of the high quality of modern Kazakhstan system of protected areas and the importance of conservation of biological diversity in the Republic of Kazakhstan. Official information on the UNESCO website on the Aksu-Zhabagly in English is available on the link – http://www.unesco.org/new/en/media-services/multimedia/photos/mab-2015/kazakhstan-aksu-zhabagly/

Video report TV 24KZ about this event can be seen on YouTube at the following link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1EKbLbwCIQo

Dr. McKenzie from Kenya delivered a speech at the evening cocktail party 8 June 2015 on the occasion of the publication of Guidelines for the management of biosphere reserves in Africa. Dr. McKenzie also fluent in Russian as he studied in St. Petersburg. At a cocktail party the delegates ICC and diplomats accredited to UNESCO, were attended. Dr. Thomas Schaaf (Germany) was one of the participants of this cocktail (in the center - the tallest man), he is a great friend of Kazakhstan and member of the international project on creation of the Kazakhstan-Russian cross-border biosphere reserve in Altai. Apart from him many other Kazakhstan friends were attended there, for example, the delegation of Ukraine (Konstantin Ablazov diplomat and vice president of the UNESCO MAB on Eastern Europe, Chairman of the MAB Dr. Pavlo Cherinko).

In 11 June the 2015 Michel Batisse Award goes to well-known specialist on nature conservation Prof. Bandi Namkhai, Director of Hustain Nuruu (Mongolia) for the great contribution to the development of biosphere reserves and research in the natural park to restore wild populations of Przewalski's horses (over 300 horses). Members of the Kazakhstan National MAB Committee (Roman Jashenko and Vitaliy Maltsev) were lucky to visit this national park near Ulaanbaatar in November 2013, and to meet with the memorable wild horses on the vast expanse hummocky of the Mongolian steppe! Congratulations to our respected colleague with this award and wish him good health and further successes!

During the 27th session of the MAB-ICC in Paris, the UNESCO MAB Bureau, which is composed of the MAB president, five regional vice presidents, and a reporter, had special meetings 1.5 hours every day in the morning and 1.5-2 hours in the evening. Key issues of the MAB program are solved in these meetings, for example, in the morning 12 June the organization of the next 4th World Congress of Biosphere Reserves UNESCO in Lima (Peru) on 14-17 March 2016 was discussed, among other issues, together with the Secretariat of the MAB. Information on the Congress is presented at a special website:
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/natural-sciences/environment/ecological-sciences/4th-world-congress/

The MAB Strategy (2015-2025) has been adopted by the current session of the MAB-ICC on 12 June.

Additional information and working papers on the 27th session of the MAB-ICC, which can be downloaded on the official MAB UNESCO website, are given below.

Final report of the 27th session of ICC (Paris, France, June 2015) is available on the link: http://www.unesco.org/new/fileadmin/MULTIMEDIA/HQ/SC/pdf/FINAL_REPORT_27_MAB-ICC_en-v2.pdf

All documentation of the 27th session of ICC are available in MAB UNESCO website by link:
http://www.unesco.org/new/en/natural-sciences/environment/ecological-sciences/man-and-biosphere-programme/about-mab/icc/icc/27th-session/

The information in English on the twenty new UNESCO Biosphere Reserves, adopted by the 27th session of the ICC, can be downloaded here: http://www.unesco.org/new/en/media-services/single-view/news/twenty_new_sites_added_to_unescos_world_network_of_biosphere_reserves/#.VoszIFI3I6s