IUCN Guidelines for the Prevention of Biodiversity Loss caused by Alien Invasive Species

In February 2001, IUCN published on-line the "Guidelines for the Prevention of Biodiversity Loss caused by Alien Invasive Species". These guidelines were prepared by ISSG in collaboration with other experts on alien invasive species and the IUCN Commission on Environmental Law. They were formely adopted by the IUCN at its 51^st Council Meeting in February 2000. The guidelines were designed to help countries, conservation agencies and concerned individuals to reduce the threats posed by invasive alien species to global biodiversity. Currently English, Spanish, and French versions are available. A printed version of the guidelines was published by ISSG as a lift-out of issue 12 of Aliens newsletter. Around 650 copies were distributed worldwide to interested readers. The printed version of the guidelines can be obtained from ISSG.

Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP)

"The Global Invasive Species Programme's goal is to enable local, national and multi-national communities to draw on the best available tools to improve pest prevention and control systems immediately, and to identify priorities for the development of new tools needed to achieve longer term success. Despite over a century of organised work on pest prevention and control, the world community today lacks many of the essential technical tools to overcome this problem. Moreover, many of the tools that do exist are not fully accessible to all nations. Effective action against the spread of pests requires global cooperation, and this can only happen when all nations are equipped to participate.

With this in mind, the Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP) will:

1. assemble the best information and approaches for prevention and management, 
2. disseminate them in the form of databases, manuals and capacity-building training programs to governments and communities, and 
3. lay the groundwork for new tools in science, information management, education, and policy that must be developed through collaborative international action.

Project leaders in eleven topic areas will work with international teams to complete these tasks. The results of this work will be disseminated via published reports, international meetings, and especially through a new network of information exchange and training to be developed as part of this project".

"The Global Invasive Species Programme (GISP) is coordinated by SCOPE, the Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment, in conjunction with IUCN, the World Conservation Union, CAB International and UNEP, the United Nations Environment Programme..."