Setting priorities

RAP is not rap, stresses Wang Hao, biologist at Peking University. The acronym for Rapid Assessment Program is a survey method originally launched by Conservation International (CI), a US-based international conservation organization that swiftly pinpoints conservation priorities.

These assessments are usually carried out by teams of experienced field specialists, Wang says. They generally include ornithologists, zoologists, botanists and herpetologists who analyze and disseminate information on threatened areas potentially rich in biodiversity.

CI's first RAP expedition, conducted in 1990 in the Alto Madidi region of Bolivia, was a spectacular success. The team discovered a wealth of species, on the strength of which the Bolivian government in 1996 created the 1.9-million-hectare Madidi National Park.