Chairman of Marjan Centre appointed

Chairman of Marjan Centre appointed

24 Aug 2010, PR 176/10

Major General Peter Davies, CB, former Director-General of the RSPCA, has taken up a new appointment within the Department of War Studies at King’s College London, to lead a ground-breaking initiative. Major General Davies is now Chairman of the Management Committee of the newly formed Marjan Centre for the Study of Conflict and Conservation (MCSCC).

MCSCC will research and alleviate the effects of war and conflict on wildlife, animal welfare, and biodiversity with the research being led by Professor Michael Rainsborough, a long-standing member of the Department of War Studies. This is the first institution set up to specifically look into the relationship between conflict and conservation.

The Department of War Studies not only leads a full teaching programme but is also an internationally leading department that provides research and analysis of issues around conflict and security. The Marjan Centre for the Study of Conflict and Conservation is incorporated within the War Studies research groups.

Professor Rainsborough said: ‘We are pleased that such an experienced and renowned figure as Major General Davies should commit to the Marjan Centre. While the effects of conflict on wildlife and biodiversity are understood the measurement and implications are much less well known. Therefore to have such an inspirational figure as Major General Davies to guide us is a giant step forward.’

Major General Davies had a similar role with the World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and was instrumental in creating the Animals in War Memorial in Park Lane, London.

Major General Davies, said: ‘I believe that the time is right for the Marjan project to provide a Centre within the prestigious War Studies Department of King’s College London to consider, evaluate and provide solutions for the issue of global conflict and its effect on conservation.

‘We intend, by the use of seminars, lectures, international university exchanges, data collection and case studies, to evaluate the history, current situation and future risks to arrive at action-planning to mitigate and alleviate the adverse effects of conflict on the conservation of all species.’

During his thirty-three years of military service Major General Davies held a number of important posts, ending as General Officer Commanding Wales. Last year he retired as Director-General of WSPA (World Society for the Protection of Animals) and is currently the Honorary Chairman of The Brooke Hospital for Animals.

Major General Davies has also held a number of voluntary posts that included the Eurogroup for Animal Welfare, ‘Flora for Fauna’, ADDACTION (Drug and Alcohol Abuse), and was the instigator behind the Universal Declaration of Animal Welfare.

The Marjan Centre for the Study of Conflict & Conservation website is: http://www.kcl.ac.uk/schools/sspp/ws/research/groups/marjan/

[Image by Andrew Holt Photography]