focused on both the ‘ends objectives’ and the strategy for income genera-
tion, without which the ‘ends’ were unlikely to be achieved.
‘Ends objectives’
These centred upon the ‘traditional’ concerns of the Society: birds and
wildlife and establishing and conserving habitats in the UK. However,
larger emphasis than before was placed upon the importance of interna-
tional work in Europe and Africa and the main concern was to ‘take up a
serious position in the global conservation community’. The newly pre-
pared mission statement embodied these concerns:
The RSPB believes that the beauty of birds and nature enriches the lives of
many people but also that nature conservation is fundamental to a healthy
environment on which the survival of the human race depends. The RSPB
therefore strives for the conservation of wild birds and the environment on
which they depend, primarily in the UK but increasingly in Europe and else-
where in the world.International development
Realization of this goal came in 1992 under Young’s guidance as the RSPB’s
focus turned to global concerns and, together with other bird and habitat
conservation organizations across the world, they formed a partnership
called ‘Birdlife International’ to address conservation issues on a global
basis. Under this banner the Society now funds projects to document the
most important areas for birds in Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Africa.
The proposed plan for expenditure is for a trebling of funding for interna-
tional conservation over 1992–97.
A major contribution to this work comes from careful investment in
research; advanced techniques using satellite imagery and electronic track-
ing provide vital information on bird movements and migrations. An indi-
cation of how important this has become is evident from the RSPB’s
expenditure of £2 million on research and monitoring in 1994/95.
Staff development
The plan stated that in order to be seen as the foremost bird conservation
organization, the recognized gap between what they actually did and
what the public perceived they did must be addressed (see Figure 2.6.1).
Every mode of communication to the public would be used to clarify its
position.
Achieving this goal would be impossible without the commitment of the
staff and volunteers, and the ‘Future Directions’ strategy recognized the
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