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BOARD OF GOVERNORS INVITES MEMBER COMMENTS ON DRAFT STATEMENT OF VALUES

As a maturing society that includes many professional conservation practitioners, SCB strives to promote the highest standards of behavior among members and colleagues. During the past few months, at the request of SCB's Board of Governors, an ad hoc committee drafted a Statement of Values to outline the values and behaviors we wish to promote. We now seek members' comments on the draft document.

The committee (Paul Beier, Norbert Cordeiro, Joe Dudley, Erica Fleishman, Devra Kleiman, Bryan Norton, Reed Noss, Mike O'Connell, Linda Olsvig-Whittaker, Jon Paul Rodríguez, Mike Scott, Jessica Seares, and Steve Trombulak) began by examining statements of ethics of various entities concerned with the ethics of conservation, education, professional behavior, research, and related fields. After lively email and telephone discussions, we developed a draft statement. At the request of the Board, we now invite you to comment on the draft. We will consider all comments received by 31 May, and then revise the document. The revised draft will be circulated by email in mid-July. If approved at the 29 July Board meeting, the Statement will be presented for a yes-or-no vote at the 1 August Members' Meeting in New York. Please note that your opportunity to suggest changes ends on 31 May. We will not be able to accommodate suggestions at the Members' Meeting.

The Statement will remind each SCB member of our responsibilities and important ethical issues related to our professional work. Although the Statement is not a binding document, we believe it will have a positive impact on individual behavior by promoting awareness and discussion of these issues. We certainly hope SCB members will reference the document when facing ethical dilemmas--for example, to argue against an overly-broad confidentiality clause before undertaking work for a client. We hope the Statement will be a source of pride for SCB members. We hope it will be taught and disseminated in many university classes related to conservation biology around the world.

Although several committee members wanted to develop a "Code of Ethics" with specific consequences for violations, we decided to develop a non-binding statement instead. There will be ample opportunity to develop a more detailed or binding policy in the future. We favor taking this important first step now, and allowing SCB members to take additional steps after a few years of experience with this Statement of Values. Some committee members questioned whether any type of statement about behavior and values would embroil SCB in controversies over allegations of inappropriate behavior. We were reassured by the fact that The Wildlife Society (which has a Ethical Code to which each Certified Wildlife Biologist must subscribe) has needed to address only two allegations during the past 17 years.

Again, we welcome your comments on specific language in the Statement of Values, as well as broader issues of whether SCB should adopt such a statement, take a different approach, or remain silent on these issues. Send your comments to scbvalues@conbio.org. We look forward to your feedback.

Paul Beier, for the ad hoc committee

Society for Conservation Biology--Statement of Values¹

1. Actively disseminate information to promote understanding of and appreciation for biodiversity and the science of conservation biology.
2. Encourage² the use of reliable information, rigorous scientific methodology, and sound inference in management decisions affecting biodiversity.
3. Recognize that uncertainty is inherent in managing ecosystems and species, that it is usually easier to prevent harm to biodiversity than to repair it later, and that, in scientific assessment of a potentially harmful action, the burden of proof lies with proponents of the action.³
4. Recognize their overriding responsibility to conservation and inform other scientists, the public, and prospective clients or employers of this responsibility.
5. Avoid actions or omissions that may compromise their responsibility to conservation and respect the competence and judgment of the professional community.
6. Be willing to perform services pro bono publico at a level appropriate to their financial abilities.
7. Perform professional services or peer reviews only in their areas of competence, cooperate with other professionals in the best interest of conservation, and refer clients to other professionals with appropriate expertise.
8. Maintain a confidential client / employer relationship except when the law or the ethical values contained in this statement require them to disclose pertinent information.
9. Refuse to allow personal interests, compensation, or other client / employer relationships to interfere with their professional judgment or advice.
10. Maintain the highest ethical standards in their research; acknowledge the limitations of their research design, data, and interpretation of results; disclose conflicts of interest; honestly discuss their findings; and attempt to correct misrepresentation of their research by others.
11. Claim authorship of a publication or report only when they have contributed substantially to the conception and design or analysis and interpretation, have helped draft or revise the article, and approve of the published version; and share authorship with all persons who meet these criteria.⁴
12. When working professionally outside their country of residence, interact and collaborate with in-country counterparts, for example by presenting seminars, conferring regularly with appropriate officials, sharing publications, and involving colleagues and students in professional activities.
13. Treat colleagues and professional contacts respectfully and support fair standards of employment and treatment for those engaged in the practice of conservation biology.
14. Work to ensure that no colleague is unjustly deprived of their job, reputation, ability to publish, or scientific freedom as a result of their conservation efforts.
15. Protect the rights and promote the welfare of human subjects used in research, and obtain the informed consent of those subjects.
16. Be cognizant of and adhere to the highest standards for treatment of animals used in research.⁵

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