The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands was signed on 2 February 1971 in the Iranian city of Ramsar, on the shore of the Caspian Sea, and took effect in 1975. It was the first modern global treaty on the conservation of a single type of ecosystem. It originally focused on wetlands as habitats for waterbirds, but its scope later widened to the protection of marshes, lakes, rivers, mangroves and coral reefs, and to the importance of wetlands for water supply and flood control. Countries that join must designate at least one site for inclusion in the List of Wetlands of International Importance and promote the wise use of their wetlands. Well over a hundred and fifty countries are parties. The secretariat is based in Switzerland, and World Wetlands Day is observed each year on 2 February.
Before and after
- from 1971 to 2001Rise of Japanese Red Army
- 1971Microprocessor
- 1971Email
- 31 January 1971Launch of Apollo 14
- 2 February 1971Ramsar Convention
- 4 February 1971Founding of Nasdaq
- from 26 March 1971 to 16 December 1971Bangladesh genocide
- from 26 March 1971 to 16 December 1971Bangladesh Liberation War
- 26 March 1971Establishment of Puerto Princesa Subterranean River National Park
More in Wars, politics & history
- from 12 March 1947 to 25 December 1991Cold War
- from 3 April 1948 to 1 December 1951Marshall Plan
- 10 December 1948Universal Declaration of Human Rights
- 26 July 1953Cuban Revolution
- from 14 October 1962 to 28 October 1962Cuban Missile Crisis
- 26 December 1991Dissolution of the Soviet Union
The era
This moment belongs to the Contemporary world (1945 CE to today), the world since 1945. You can also browse everything in the 20th century.