Conference on native breeds and varieties as part of natural and cultural heritage – šibenik

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CONFERENCE ON NATIVE BREEDS AND VARIETIES AS PART OF NATURAL AND CULTURAL HERITAGE – ŠIBENIK

The representatives of the Public Institution “Priroda” attended the international Conference on Native Breeds and Varieties as Part of Natural and Cultural Heritage held in Šibenik from 13 – 16 November 2007. The conference was organised by the State Institute for Nature
Protection under the patronage of the Government of the Republic of Croatia. About 200 people participated, representatives of various scientific institutions, government bodies, professional institutions and associations, public institutions for managing protected areas, breeder associations
and international associations from the whole of Croatia and from 20 foreign countries.

Some 100 papers were presented at the Conference in five sections: plenary presentations, indigenous breeds of domestic animals, indigenous varieties of plants, a poster section, and a section dealing with the issues of breeds and varieties in protected areas. The representatives
of the Public Institution “Priroda” participated in this last section with a special paper entitled “Impact of Animal Husbandry on the Biodiversity and Landscape Structure of Kvarner Bay Islands”. This paper can be found and read on the web pages of the Public Institution “Priroda”
(see Publications).

The advantage of the Conference was that it applied a very interdisciplinary approach to dealing with and addressing the issues of indigenous breeds and varieties and the complex interaction within their habitats. This prompted the participation of representatives from diverse
professions: naturalists (agronomists, veterinarians, biologists…), humanities scholars (ethnologists, archaeologists, sociologists), as well as people who, in their everyday work, deal with the problems of protecting and breeding domesticated animal and plant breeds and varieties. The Conference
also pointed to the urgent need of protecting and permanently conserving threatened native breeds and varieties and their habitats in Croatia. As soon as the conclusions of the Conference have been completed, they will be available on the “Priroda” web pages.