Page 2 - MISE Project Report

Introduction
The Mammals in a Sustainable Environment project (MISE) fosters the involvement of communities in mammal conservation through public engagement in mammal survey work. The project aimed to develop and run a range of workshops and training courses to enhance public understanding of the mammals in Ireland and Wales, to heighten public awareness of mammals in the environment by involving volunteers in sample collection and to use DNA analysis to monitor key mammal species from non-invasively collected samples.
MISE is a collaboration between Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) (lead partner), Waterford City and County Council and the National Biodiversity Data Centre in Ireland, and The Vincent Wildlife Trust, Natural Resources Wales and Snowdonia National Park Authority in Wales. The project is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) through the Ireland Wales Programme (INTERREG 4A). Over the course of the project, two partners underwent organisational mergers, which saw the Countryside Council for Wales become part of Natural Resources Wales, and Waterford County Council merged with Waterford City Council to become Waterford City and County Council.
Funding and Partner logos
In this publication, you will read about some of the varied work that the MISE project has engaged in, including otter surveys, red squirrel conservation and grey squirrel control efforts, bat surveys and small mammal surveys. Throughout the project, we have engaged with thousands of people through local wildlife surveys, school visits and community events. The results from our events have been disseminated at community talks and national and international conferences, thus ensuring that scientific and local community members learn about our work and findings.
As this current project draws to a close, MISE will be leaving a number of legacies behind including the establishment and revival of local mammal groups, conservation enhancementssuchasbatandpinemarten boxes and educational resources. The data from our surveys will all be made publically available at record centres in Ireland and Wales, from which planning authorities, researchers and interested individuals can access the information. Finally, the lessons, achievements and successes from the MISE project will be used to help us create our next collaborative project which we hope will commence in the near future.
EUROPEAN REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT FUND
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