Publication
Final Report on the EAAFP’s 2021-2022 Small Grant Programme

At the end of January 2023, the East Asian-Australasian Flyway Partnership (EAAFP) published the final report on their 2021-2022 Small Grant Programme. The report presents two projects conducted in the summer of 2022 in cooperation with two local organisations. These programmes were sponsored by Hanns Seidel Foundation (HSF) & KOEN Yeongheung Power Division.

As part of the first project, local youth on Baengnyeong Island have been taught about Black-faced Spoonbills (BFS). This bird, of which there are only 6100 individuals, is classified as an endangered species (EN) and is listed on the International Union for Conservation (IUCN) Red List. Throughout 2022, students from the Baengnyeong Social Welfare Center Youth After-school Academy embarked on several field trips to monitor the BFS’s breeding patterns on the island. The project aimed to raise awareness for the BFS and build monitoring skills among the local youth.

The second project promoted awareness of the importance of migratory birds including BFS, wetlands, and biodiversity. The programme sought to improve the perception of the Namdong Industrial Complex, Namdong Reservoir, and the Songdo tidal flat. It was laid out as a family program where children would participate with their parents.

In his speech during the presentation of the report, EAAFP chairperson Doug Watkins specifically thanked HSF and KOEN for their cooperation. Thanks to HSF, three civil society organisations could realise projects in the inner-Korean border area. This way, public awareness of biodiversity was raised and efforts for ecological research in the DMZ were strengthened.