Members, partners, Pro Vice Chancellor for the Pacific Professor Jemaima Tiatia-Siau.
First most importantly I want to acknowledge our key sponsors the European Union through SPREPs Pacific BioScapes Programme and Government of France through Fonds Pacifique.
I want to acknowledge SPC who were to co-host this symposium in Noumea last year but were unable to due to political circumstances. We are very grateful for their support for bringing Kaumatua Ramari Stewart here today for our important session on traditional knowledge and seabirds. SPREP hope to host a future OSS.
I also want to acknowledge the support provided by the Australasian Seabird Group to fund participants from small NGOs in the Cook Islands and Samoa to participate.
Other supporters of this symposium who have contributed funding, expertise, staff, and are supporting our workshops and field trips including SPC, World Seabird Union, Wildlife International Limited, the Northern New Zealand Seabird Trust, NZ Department of Conservation, Auckland Council, Dive Tutukaka and the University of Auckland.
Welcome Welcome Welcome to the inaugural Oceania Seabird Symposium.
Preparations for this Symposium have been going on for well over a year. SPREP appreciates the enthusiastic support for holding this conference and assistance in preparations from a number of people who were involved in the steering committee and committees to develop the scientific programme, workshops and field trips. Without that help none of this would have been possible.
Seabirds are the least understood and most threatened group of birds globally. Our goal for seabirds in the Pacific Seabird Action Plan is to Conserve seabirds and their habitats, recognizing the traditions and aspirations of the peoples of the Pacific Ocean and islands.
SPREP has great pleasure in launching two new resources at this symposium which we hope will be of great benefit and use for our Pacific Members in their efforts to protect and conserve this vulnerable group. Both products were supported through funding from the EU through the Pacific BioScapes Programme.
The first one is the Pacific Seabirds Survey and monitoring Manual. Tools to Support Seabird Conservation across Ecosystems in Oceania.
The goal of this manual is to encourage and support seabird conservation and research across the region, particularly in areas where this work is just starting out. It considers all the proven methods and survey types that are currently in use across the region, to provide readers with the tools required to run successful seabird survey and monitoring programmes. We are grateful to the lead authors Chris Gaskin and André Raine as well as many contributing expert authors from around the region.
The next tool we are delighted to launch is the Pacific Seabirds Database hosted on SPREP's Pacific Environment Data Portal. This portal takes advantage of a database that has been built up over many years by BirdLife International. It is interactive and will provide an important baseline for future surveys of colonies across the Pacific.
Both resources will be showcased at this symposium including a desk in the foyer hosted by SPREP and consultants 80 Options who can help you discover the seabird colony database. They will also be in the workshop session on seabird surveying and monitoring where the seabird monitoring manual will also be presented.
I now have great pleasure in introducing Professor Jemaina Tiatia -Siau Pro Vice-Chancellor for the Pacific here at Auckland University for her opening remarks.