by Mike Loomis
March 17, 1999
I attended the opening session of the Conference on Sustainable Management of Tropical Forests at 10 a.m. this morning. It was held at the Palace of Congress and numerous groups in ethnic dress were performing traditional dances. Five Heads of State, representing Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Congo, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, were in attendance. Also attending were Prince Phillip of the British Commonwealth and representatives from the World Bank, European Union, European Commission, and the African Development Bank. Needless to say, security was extremely heavy. I relied on English translation to follow the proceedings since they were in French and a variety of African languages. The goal of the conference is to highlight the importance of tropical forests, not only to biodiversity, but to the economic health of the region. The Presidents and their ministers are in session now and hope to have a joint resolution by 5 p.m. today.
About the author:Dr. Mike Loomis is Chief Veterinarian at the North Carolina Zoological Park.
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