Video about conservation in Hawaii compared to Australia and North America

The keynote presentation at the 2007 Hawaii Conservation Conservation
by Michael Soulé (Environmental Studies, University of California at Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA) on

“Is Island Conservation Fundamentally Different from Continental Conservation?”

photo credit: RKHawaii

Professor Michael Soulé says about his presentation in Hawaii:

Conservationists don’t need reminding that context must be considered and somehow dealt with in doing conservation work in real places.

There are several kinds of context: geographic context (e.g., climate, topography, biogeography), economic context (e.g., poverty levels, income disparities, investment in women’s education), political context (e.g., civil rights, political access, freedom of the press, fair elections, rights and sovereignty of indigenous peoples), and culture context (e.g., religion, literacy, corruption, diversity, history).

As biologists, we are best able to consider the biogeographic and scale issues. For example, it may be informative to compare the conservation visions and challenges of large continents versus small ones, or compare continents to islands. I will compare the conservation challenges in three places that span such a range.

These are
(1) mainland North America;

(2) the island-continent of Australia; and

(3) the archipelago of Hawai‘i.

I will discuss how these three places differ with respect to

• (a) threats such as exotics/ferals and future “invasibility,”
• (b) history such as extinction episodes in pre-history and in recent history,
• (c) sensitivity to climate change,
• (d) the kinds, scales, and relevance of dispersal behaviors and adaptive evolutionary potential for different taxa, and
• (e) the role of large, highly interactive species in maintaining biological diversity.

The Palm Islands were designed and built with the idea of creating more beachfront land for Dubai, which was previously in short supply. During the initial brainstorming sessions, the ruler of Dubai is said to have drawn a sketch of a palm tree, realising that its fronds would provide more beach space than the traditional circular island, and from this insight, the idea of Palm Islands were born.

Three separate Palm Island projects exist: The Palm Jebel, The Palm Jumeirah, and The Palm Deira. The Palm Jumeirah was the first to be completed, and residents started moving into properties at the end of 2006. The trilogy is the largest land reclamation project in the world and also represents the world’s largest artificial islands and they can even be seen from space. The trilogy required extensive studies, planning and research, which was unprecedented in its scale and complexity.

The Jumeirah Palm doesn’t just feature luxury villas and white sand beaches, however. The Atlantis Resort is an ambitious construction featuring the Royal Towers – an architectural wonder, and yet another impressive landmark for Dubai, with its towering arches, arabesque domes and ornate spires overlooking the warm, clear and calm waters of the Arabian golf.

The Atlantis resort also features hotel accommodation in the form of 1539 rooms and suites, the first open air marine habitat in the Middle East, and Aquaventure: a huge 17 hectare water park, featuring a 2km long wave river, a tidal pool and the 27.5 meter near-vertical drop slide which propels visitors through a submerged tunnel into a shark filled lagoon. The entire Atlantis complex is set amongst manicured aquatic gardens and white sand beaches, and is expected to be fully open to the public by autumn 2008.

With such a vast amount to see and do, Dubai holidays are becoming extremely popular with westerners, and many are finding that Dubai’s ever developing landscape means that despite the relatively small size of the Emirate, there is always a new architectural wonder to experience.

With the other two Palm Islands constructions in progress and many more exciting projects in the pipeline, Dubai’s dynamic landscape continues to grow, creating an outstanding destination for a honeymoon, family or luxury holiday and shows that the Emirate has become the Middle East’s foremost vacation destinaiton.

Author: Andrew Regan.

Andrew Regan is an online, freelance author from Scotland. He is a keen rugby player and enjoys travelling.

The emirate of Dubai is considered as the pearl of the Middle East. Every year tourists from around the world flock to the Dubai Islands to experience the magic of its endless beauty, white beaches, shopping malls and luxurious hotels. Dubai Islands, also known as Palm Dubai or Palm Islands are the world’s three largest man-made islands constructed in the shape of a palm tree. These islands are built on the coast of the emirate of Dubai and they maintain Dubai’s reputation as a premium tourist place. It consists of 300 small private artificial islands which are divided into four categories i.e. private homes, estate homes, dream resorts, and community islands.

These three islands are located near Jumeirah, Jebel Ali and Deira. They are palm tree-shaped islands and each island has a main trunk, a circular ring and 17 branches supported by luxury hotels, 4000 exclusive residential villas, posh estates, 1000 awesome water homes, marinas, water theme parks, facilities like sports, theaters, shopping malls, restaurants, spas etc. A lot of people consider Dubai Islands as eighth wonder of the world.

The Palm Jumeirah is a residential area for living, relaxation and leisure. It has three types of villas i.e. Signature Villas, Town Homes, and Garden Homes. The Palm Jebel Ali is an entertainment destination for everyone. The island is 50% larger than Palm Jumeirah, and includes six marinas, a Sea Village, a water theme park and water homes.

The development of Palm Deira was announced in October 2004. It will become the world’s largest man-made island and housing for more than a million people, once finished by 2015. This island is 8 times larger than the Palm Jumeirah, and 5 times larger than the Palm Jebel Ali.

It is amazing that such a tiny city in the middle of the desert has so much to offer for every visitor. Dubai Islands are not just for your holidays but they are the best for your everyday lives. It is the most exclusive development and mega investment in the world.

Dubai has so much to offer that anyone can get confused where to start. Here you can enjoy warm blue waters of the Southern Gulf and winter sunshine in five star luxurious hotels. Go for camel riding, sunbath, swimming, sail, exciting nightlife and water ski and you will get the opportunity to visit magnificent palaces. This place has emerged as the most popular gateways to the UAE and offers a huge choice of things to do on your holiday. If you are pressed for time, just go for organized tours, they offer the unique opportunity to see so much in a short period of time.

Dubai is on the migratory path between Europe, Asia and Africa and therefore in spring and autumn, it is an ornithologist’s delight with more than 300 species of bird life passing through. You can experience new and old Dubai in a fascinating way by taking part in a creek tour. If you are interested in camel racing, it is in October when the season starts.

Finally, you can be one of many tourist to visit Dubai Islands, what has become one of the world’s “hottest” destinations, often compared to the energy and excitement of Hong Kong when it was first making a splash on the world stage. I must say that Dubai is a fantastic place to visit where you can have everything you need for your enjoyment.

Author Terrence Cohen.

The amazing Palm Islands of Dubai are being hailed as the eight wonder of world. These are three absolutely astounding man-made marvels and are the largest artificial islands in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. The Palm Islands are located off the coast of The United Arab Emirates in the Persian Gulf and will add 520 km of beaches to the city of Dubai. The islands were commissioned by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum and are being constructed by Nakheel Properties.

The Palms

The Palm Islands also referred to as The Palm Dubai and The Palms will be in the shape of a palm tree, topped with a crescent, and will have a large number of residential, leisure and entertainment centers. Each of the islands Palm Jumeirah, Palm Jebel Ali, and Palm Deira are being built in the shape of a date palm tree and consist of a trunk, a crown with fronds, and are surrounded by a crescent island that acts as a breakwater.

The islands will support luxury hotels, freehold residential villas, unique water homes, shoreline apartments, marinas, water theme parks, restaurants, shopping malls, sports facilities, health spas, cinemas and various diving sites.

The Palm Jumeirah

The Palm Jumeirah is the smallest of the three Palm Islands, it is located on the Jumeirah coastal area. The unique man-made island is built in the shape of a date palm tree and consists of a trunk, a crown with 17 fronds, and a surrounding crescent island that will form a water-breaker.

The Jumeirah Palm Island is basically a retreat and residential area for living, recreation, and leisure. It will contain three types of villas -Signature Villas, Garden Homes, and Canal Cove Town Homes, shoreline apartment buildings, beaches, marinas, restaurants, cafes, themed boutique hotels, and a variety of retail outlets.

All the major international hotel brands will be available at The Palm Jumeirah including Movenpick Resort Oceana Palm Jumeirah, Moevenpick Resort & Spa Palm Jumeirah, Antara, Fairmont Palm Residence, Radisson SAS, Hilton, Metropolitan, Shangri La, etc. Major attractions of the island are

Logo Islands -The Palm, Jumeirah will contain two identical artificial islands of 140 thousand cubic meters in the shape of The Palm’s logo -a wispy palm leaf on either side of its trunk. The islands will be personal islands for Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoom.

Lighthouse Hotel and Residence -Located on the crescent of the Palm Jumeirah, the Lighthouse Hotel and Residence’s architecture was designed to capture the light of the rising sun and beam it into the complex’s interior. The Lighthouse Hotel will contain 380 rooms and during the night, the roof will be lit and an arc of light will be projected across the Palm Jumeirah and the Arabian Gulf.

The Palm Residence Al Nabat and Al Haseer -Two residential apartment buildings, located on the eastern shore of the trunk of Palm Jumeirah, contain their own private beach and clubhouse. Designed in the Arab Eclectic style, fusing elements of the Arabian heritage with modern materials, each of its apartments will either have a sea or garden view.

Marina Residences (Marina Apartments) -Located on the northern edge of the Palm Jumeirah’s trunk, the Marina Residences will comprise of six luxury residential freehold buildings with 858 apartments and 12 penthouses. The development will also include 30 independent townhouses and be surrounded by picturesque landscaping and recreational areas.

The Palm Jebel Ali

The Palm Jebel Ali is the middle-sized island; it is located on the Jebel Ali coastal area. The unique man-made palm-shaped island will consist of a trunk, a crown with 17 fronds, and a surrounding crescent island that will form a water-breaker.

The Jebel Ali Palm is more of an entertainment destination for both adults and children, which caters to both residents and tourists. The island will include six marinas, a ‘Sea Village’, a water theme park and water homes built on stilts between the fronds and the crescent.

The Palm Deira

The Palm Deira is the largest of the three islands; it is located on the Deirah coastal area. The unique man-made palm-shaped island will consist of a trunk, a crown with 41 fronds, and a surrounding crescent island that will form a water-breaker. Upon completion, it will become the world’s largest man-made island, housing more than a million people.

The Palm Deira will cover 14 kilometers (8.7 miles) in length and 8.5 kilometers in width and have an area of 80 square kilometers. It will consist of residential property, marinas, shopping malls, sports facilities, and clubs. The residential area will be located on the fronds and will contain 8,000 two-storey town houses in three distinct styles – Premier Villas, Grand Villas and Vista Town Homes.

By author Raman Verma.

As Dubai continues to set new records for building and growth, its man-made islands are some of the more exceptional projects to behold in the Emirate. The Palm Islands are three sets of man-made islands, each shaped in a variation of a palm tree, while the World is a collection of 300 man-made islands forming a map of the world.

The projects’ unique qualities has set them apart from the numerous Dubai building projects.The first of the Palm Islands to be conceived and constructed, the Palm Jumeirah, is currently the largest man-made island in the world. It has a trunk, crown with 17 palm fronds and a crescent surrounding it. The first phase of the project, 20 Shoreline Apartment buildings on the trunk, is nearly complete. Individuals and families began moving in late last year and the handover of properties continues.

Individual homes and villas located in the fronds are nearing completion and will be ready for the first owners to move in soon. 28 beachfront hotels are in the works for the outer crescent, including the Atlantis Hotel, a 1,500 room resort and water park.

The Trump International Hotel and Tower will be the centerpiece of the trunk. The premier Marina Residences will consist of six towers at the very tip of the trunk. The Marina, Residences, which will have 940 apartments and 40 townhomes, is expected to begin handover to the new occupants and owners by the end of 2008.

The Palm Jumeirah

The first of the Dubai Palm Islands to be conceived and constructed, The Palm Jumeirah is also the smallest at 5 km in diameter. This island contains hotels, villas and apartments as well as retail shops and a marina. Each frond will make up a distinct, private neighborhood. The outer crescent will form a breakwater and have a number of luxury hotels and restaurants along its 11 km length in addition to residences. The trunk of this island is 2 km long and contains luxury hotels and residential apartments surrounding a 7.8 hectare park. The whole island will be connected by a monorail to whisk residents and visitors to their intended destinations on and off the island.

The Palm Jebel Ali is located in the Watefront Project near the Dubai-Abu Dhabi border. This area will be the home to 1.7 million people when complete in 2020, and the first island properties are expected to be ready in 2010.

The Palm Deira will take over as the world’s largest man-made island, according to the developer, Nakheel. It will reach over 12 km into the sea and have a width of 7.5 km, with residential space for over 1 million people when complete. Approximately 20% of the land reclamation has been completed for this project.

The final man-made island development is The World. 300 islands are taking shape in a map of our planet, with each one being sold and developed to private interests. Many will be turned into resorts and have properties for sale, while some will remain the exclusive domain of the lucky, and well-off, owners.

By author Nicholas Marr.