UNESCO CLAYOQUOT SOUND biosphere reserve

In January, 2000, Clayoquot Sound was designated a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve in recognition of local efforts to balance environmental conservation and sustainable economic development.

The Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve extends from Esowista Peninsula to just north of Estevan Point. It includes both land and marines areas covering a total of 349,947 hectares (866,205 acres).

The guiding principle of the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve is the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations philosophy “Hishuk ish ts’awalk” or “everything is one.” This idea reflects the interconnectedness of all things—both within ecosystems, and between human communities and the environment. In the Biosphere Reserve, resource managers and communities try to base decisions on an understanding of local environments and ecosystems.

What is a Biosphere Reserve?

UNESCO—the United Nations Economic, Social, and Cultural Organization—established its Man and the Biosphere Programme in 1970. The purpose of the program is to advance international efforts to balance the conservation of ecosystems with the sustainable use of natural resources. Unesco Biosphere Reserves are not parks, but they do contain protected areas.

Biosphere Reserves have three key functions:

Conservation—to conserve landscapes, ecosystems, species and genetic variation;

Development—to foster economic and human development which is socio-culturally and ecologically sustainable; and

Logistics—to provide support for research, monitoring, education and information exchange related to local, national and global issues of conservation and development.

Biosphere Reserves incorporate three different land use zones:

Core Areas provide for long-term protection of key landscapes, ecosystems and species. No resource extraction takes place in the core areas.

Buffer Zones are areas where some resource extraction and development can take place, as long as these activities do not undermine the conservation objectives of the core area. Examples include research and innovation in resource management practices.

Transition Areas (or zones of cooperation) are areas of ongoing economic activity and human communities. In a Biosphere Reserve, local communities, conservation agencies, scientists, non-government organizations, cultural groups, private enterprises and other stakeholders must agree to work together to manage sustainable and develop the area’s resources for the benefit of the people who live there.

Clayoquot Sound is part of an international network of Biosphere Reserves with a mandate for research and education, and sharing information on issues of conservation and development in various places around the world.

The guiding principle of the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Reserve is the Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations philosophy "Hishuk ish ts'awalk" or "everything is one." This idea reflects the interconnectedness of all things - both within ecosystems, and between human communities and the environment.

There are 425 Biosphere Reserves around the world. At the time of its designation, Clayoquot Sound was the 11th Biosphere Reserve in Canada, and the first in British Columbia.