Philip MCGOWAN

My work has developed from species-specific fieldwork in the 1980s and 1990s on a highly threatened, yet little known, group of birds (Galliformes: pheasants, partridges and allies), mostly in Asia, through interdisciplinary research to understand the local human dimension of natural resource use and conservation (2000s), to my current research and engagement at the interface of biodiversity science and management/policy, and capacity building. I have worked with the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN), an intergovernmental body that has observer status at the UN General Assembly since 1992 and have held leadership roles within its Species Survival Commission (SSC) for more than a decade, developing species action plans (1990s) and guidelines for both species conservation planning and ex situ management (2008-2014). I have been on IUCN delegations to meetings of the Convention on Biological Diversity, Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species and the Intergovernmental Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services, and my research has been cited in their reports and assessments. I presently Chair the SSC Task Force supporting the implementation of the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework and was recently part of a monitoring mission for an Indian UNESCO World Heritage Site. All recommendations were adopted by the World Heritage Committee at its 45th meeting. I have recently been selected to sit on the Convention on Biological Diversity’s Informal Advisory Group for Technical and Scientific Cooperation.