Global Invasive Species Program: U.S. Contribution

Additional information: National Invasive Species Council

Purpose of Initiative: The Global Invasive Species Program (GISP) is designed to build international consensus and develop strategies to reduce the threat posed by invasive alien species. Invasive alien species are plants or animals from other countries that can spread rapidly, often replacing native species. As a GISP partner, the U.S. Government supports and promotes international efforts to combat the spread of these species. The introduction and establishment of invasive species can have serious consequences for human health, the environment, and economic prosperity. Invasive alien species, such as the West Nile virus and zebra mussels, are moving around the world into new regions, where they can spread unchecked. The global economic loss to agriculture, biodiversity, fisheries, forests, and industry, caused by invasive species, is in the billions of dollars annually, with the annual impact in the U.S. estimated at more than $100 billion.

Resources: Through its National Invasive Species Council (www.invasivespecies.gov), consisting of 11 USG agencies and Departments¹, the USG provides technical and financial assistance in support of GISP international activities to minimize the risk and impact of invasive alien species on human health, economic development, and the environment.

Partners: Governments: Brazil, Costa Rica, Denmark, South Africa, Thailand, the United States, and Zambia. International Organizations and Agreements: Scientific Committee on Problems of the Environment (SCOPE), IUCN - The World Conservation Union, International Maritime Organization, International Plant Protection Convention, CAB International, and the Convention on Biological Diversity. Non-governmental organizations: The Nature Conservancy, Bishop Museum of Hawaii; National Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and the Packard Foundation.

Partnership Efforts to Date: Through GISP, the U.S. has sponsored regional workshops to bring together government officials and non-governmental experts to share information and develop strategies. The first U.S.-sponsored GISP regional workshop was held in Denmark for the Nordic-Baltic region in 2001. In May 2002, Estonia hosted a follow up workshop and participants produced a plan for a regional invasive alien species information network and inventory/monitoring system for invasive alien species in the Baltic region. Five additional regional workshops were held during 2001 and 2002: Costa Rica for the Meso-American and Caribbean region, Brazil for the South American region, Zambia for the Southern Africa region, Thailand for the South and Southeast Asia region, and the United States (Hawaii) for the Austral-Pacific region. The eighth and final regional workshop is being planned for November 2003, in Ghana. The U.S. Department of State with the U.S. Geological Survey and the Nature Conservancy (another GISP partner) will convene a workshop in Washington, D.C. to follow up on the recommendations from these regional workshops in 2004. GISP will publish proceedings from each of the workshops, including the proposed strategy for action and a compilation of national reports that provide an overview of the status of the problem and efforts to address it, by the end of 2003.

Primary Points of Contact: National Invasive Species Council: Lori Williams (Phone: 202/354-1886, E-mail: lori_williams@ios.doi.gov); U.S. Department of State: Dana Roth (Phone: 202/736-7428, E-mail: RothDS@state.gov); U.S. Agency for International Development: Tim Resch (Phone: 202/712-4453, E-mail: tresch@usaid.gov); U.S. Department of Interior: A. Gordon Brown (202/354-1879; E-mail: a_gordon_brown@ios.doi.gov)
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¹ Agency for International Development, Department of Agriculture, Department of Commerce, Department of Defense, Department of Health and Human Services, Department of Interior, Department of State, Department of Transportation, Department of Treasury, Environmental Protection Agency and the Smithsonian Institution.