Emilie fleur Neubauer
Biologist, Scientist, Educator, Communicator, Artist, Yogi
My Work
Project |01 Wales Biodiversity Week
Unique – Only in Wales is there an annual, coordinated week of countrywide events and activities organised specifically to promote and raise awareness of action to protect local biodiversity. 159 dedicated biodiversity awareness events took place during the 9 days of WBW 2006.
Stimulus – This awareness raising work is due to the focus of and support for a nationally coordinated week.
Opportunities – The week provides opportunities for regional and partnership working, attracts external funding and to quote an event organiser “encourages Biodiversity Officers to engage with schools”.
As part of my role as the WPB Communications Officer, I was responsible for coordinating the delivery of strategic awareness projects such as the Wales Biodiversity Week (WBW) and the BBC Breathing Spaces campaign.
Project |02 Local Success - a celebration of local biodiversity action in Wales
Celebrating grass roots conservation projects, I ran the WBP 2006 Biodiversity Awards where local community projects were nominated as local community success stories. This Local Success document was published, featuring 11 flagship projects. The launch event was attended by the Welsh Assembly Government Environment minister Carwyn Jones AM.
One Project: The Monmouthshire meadows project has saved populations of the rare greater butterfly orchid, discovering a meadow with the largest population in the county. Meadows are carefully managed by mowing, baling and removing hay, using a combination of alpine tractor and allen scythe. Grazing is also carefully controlled by rotating members’ Dexter cattle, sheep and Exmoor ponies among sites. Meadows and other flower-rich grasslands are a fantastic local resource, but are seriously threatened nationally. The project now boasts more than 80 members managing approximately 500 acres of meadows.
The booklet was printed on 100% recycled paper with vegetable inks.
Project |03 Centres for Marine Awareness and Marine Education
Bangor Pier is a beautiful victorian pier that reaches out across the Menai Strait, a body of water between the Isle of Anglesey and the Welsh mainland. The Menai strait is a designated European Special Area of Conservation, due to high tidal currents it has fantastic sponge and algal communities supporting a wealth of shellfish.
The pier has the original kiosks dotted along the boardwalk. As founding member of the community NGO Marine Awareness North Wales I worked with a team of volunteers to set up an interpretation centre, the Centre for Marine Awareness and the Marine Education Centre, used for school groups, workshops and training days. The centre provided interpretation boards about habitats and species beneath the pier, a marine tank with local fish, anemones and crabs and also a number of ways to protect marine wildlife such as following the Seashore Code.
Myself and two other founding members raised funds through public talks and secured £15,494 funding from European sustainable development fund.