Ramsar Convention

The Ramsar Convention is formally titled the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance especially as Waterfowl Habitat. It was adopted in the Iranian city of Ramsar on 2 February 1971 and entered into force on 21 December 1975, making it one of the oldest modern multilateral environmental agreements and the only global treaty focused on a single ecosystem type.

The treaty obliges parties to:

• Designate at least one wetland for inclusion on the List of Wetlands of International Importance (the "Ramsar List") and maintain its ecological character.
• Promote wise use of all wetlands within their territory through national land-use planning, policies, and legislation.
• Cooperate internationally on transboundary wetlands, shared species, and development assistance.

"Wetlands" are defined broadly in Article 1 to include marshes, peatlands, lakes, rivers, mangroves, coral reefs, and other marine areas no deeper than six metres at low tide. Sites are nominated against criteria covering representative or unique wetland types and significance for biodiversity, particularly waterbirds, fish, and threatened species. A site whose ecological character is changing or likely to change due to human action can be placed on the Montreux Record, a watchlist established in 1990.

Governance rests with the Conference of the Contracting Parties (COP), which meets roughly every three years, a Standing Committee, and a Scientific and Technical Review Panel. The Secretariat is hosted by IUCN in Gland, Switzerland. Ramsar works closely with other biodiversity-related conventions through the Biodiversity Liaison Group, including the CBD, CITES, CMS, and the World Heritage Convention.

The Convention is notable for two features uncommon in environmental law of its era: it predates the 1972 Stockholm Conference, and its obligations attach to specific listed sites, giving it a concrete spatial focus. It does not, however, contain a strong compliance mechanism — implementation relies largely on national reporting and peer scrutiny at COPs. For MUN and research purposes, Ramsar is frequently cited in debates on biodiversity finance, climate adaptation (peatland carbon), and indigenous co-management of protected areas.