About Us

Cooperation

The IPS is cooperating with a number of other non-government organisations, different universities and other important institutes dealing with peat and peatland matters.

These range from information exchange via newsletters and magazines to co-organising symposia, field trips and similar events. The most important cooperation partners at the moment are:

International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS)
International Mire Conservation Group (IMCG)
Growing Media Europe (GME)
Energy Peat Europe (EPE)
Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS)
Wetlands International
Ramsar
UNESCO
FAO
IUFRO
NorBalWet
UNFCCC
IPCC

International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS)

As peat is one of the most important raw materials for the horticultural industry worldwide, but also hobby gardeners, and often significant for the success of their products, we are working closely together with the International Society for Horticultural Science (ISHS). This cooperation is visible especially in event management and marketing, but also in the exchange of publications.

Joint “Peat in Horticulture” symposia were held e.g. in Angers, France 2005, in Nottingham 2007, Amsterdam in 2010, Barcelona 2011 and Milano 2019.

More information can be found at: www.ishs.org.

International Mire Conservation Group (IMCG)

IPS and IMCG meet regularly to discuss current cooperation projects.

  • The most recent meetings were held in Valencia, Spain in 2002, at the 12th International Peat Congress in Tampere, Finland in 2004, in Espoo, Finland in July 2006 and informally in Tullamore in 2008. A joint excursion was held in June 2007 in Sweden.
  • Examples of this fruitful cooperation are the book on “Wise Use of Mires and Peatlands” (2002) and the joint journal “Mires and Peat” (2006). Many IMCG members participated also in the consultation process for the Strategy for Responsible Peatland Management.

More information on the IMCG can be found at: www.imcg.net.

The Ramsar Convention and CC-GAP

IPS is working closely together with the Ramsar Convention on Wetlands and its Coordination Committee on Global Action for Peatlands (CC-GAP).

  • The IPS Executive Board attended the 9th Convention of the Parties (COP8) in Valencia, Spain in 2002. In 2005, Secretary General Jaakko Silpola was present at COP9 in Kampala, Uganda.
  • The meetings of CC-GAP are regularly attended by IPS representatives. In July 2006, representatives of IPS, IMCG and CC-GAP held a meeting at Meripuisto in Espoo, Finland.
  • One outcome of this cooperation was the brochure “Peatlands. Do you care?” launched in autumn 2005. The brochure can be ordered from the IPS Secretariat.

For more information, please visit: www.ramsar.org.

Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS)

IPS is also working together with the Society of Wetland Scientists (SWS), for instance by exchanging information on forthcoming events and research projects on an individual level.

More information: www.sws.org