Lecturer makes a splash
12 February 2010
Dr Andrew Hull, Reader in Countryside Management in the School of Social Science, has been elected as the first President of the European Pond Conservation Network (EPCN).
The EPCN was founded in Geneva in 2004 and seeks to promote the awareness, understanding and conservation of ponds in a changing European landscape. Today the network has grown with over 350 representatives from 27 countries in Europe and North Africa drawn for university research laboratories, statutory nature conservation agencies and environmental organisations.
Dr Hull’s appointment follows over 20 years of work on small water bodies, during which time he was Director of the European funded Pond Life Project – which investigated ways in which the valuable pond landscapes of north west England could be protected. Outputs from this project have been widely applied in the UK and elsewhere in Europe.
As president, Dr Hull is working on ways in which the EPCN can be expanded so as to involve all stakeholders, particularly from the agricultural community and land use planning agencies and one of his first tasks is to develop a robust information and communication strategy for the organisation. As co-author of the Pond Manifesto – which sets out the out the case for protecting ponds - a strategy has been put in place for their conservation and attitudes towards these small but vital habitats has begun to change.
Apart from their crucial role for biodiversity, ponds can also provide a whole range of ecosystem services and, importantly, help us encourage the link between people and wildlife. The work of the EPCN has recently been recognised by the Secretary General of the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands.
The next international conference of the EPCN will be held in Berlin in June 2010 and information about this event, the work of the EPCN and the Pond Manifesto can be found at: www.europeanponds.org
