Local action – global impact” through Site Support Groups

Conserving IBAs and KBAs

Important Bird Areas and Key Biodiversity Areas focus conservation action on the most critical sites. They guide the designation of protected areas and the implementation of other areabased conservation mechanisms, including using social media for conservation action.

“Local action – global impact” through Site Support Groups

The Mare d’Oursi (Lake Oursi) Site Support Group (SSG) in Burkina Faso is turning to social media to save their local wetland. Members are using smart phones to respond immediately to fires and poaching. The group is composed of volunteers entrusted to care for Lake Oursi – an important wetland in landlocked Burkina Faso, where large numbers of Palearctic bird species migrating within the region congregate annually. Some 16,000 people also depend on it for their livelihoods. Unfortunately, this globally important wetland is facing many threats, including overgrazing, siltation, eutrophication, deforestation, poaching of birds and collection of birds’ eggs. These have led to a rapid decline of migratory birds in the area.

BirdLife, in collaboration with NATURAMA (BirdLife in Burkina Faso), have trained the Mare d’Oursi Site Support Group on the types, uses and impacts of social media for conservation. Through this empowerment, timely communication among group members has helped to save a number of wild ducks, changed perceptions in local communities around Lake Oursi about conserving biodiversity and enhanced the relationships between the SSG and international partners such as RSPB (BirdLife in the UK), Vogelbescherming Nederland (VBN, BirdLife in The Netherlands) and Ligue pour la Protection des Oiseaux (LPO, BirdLife in France). It has also resulted in the creation of an official Facebook page for the Mare d’Oursi SSG.

The widespread use of social networks has provided a powerful tool for groups conserving IBAs to spread their messages and build communities that share a common vision.

Women of the Mare d’Oursi SSG participating in training for production of clean stoves. (PHOTO: ©Oumar Baro)