4 December 2007
New Collaborative Book From CEMEX, Birdlife And Sierra Madre Claims Birds Are People's Strongest Bond To Nature

A new book, Birds and People- Bonds in a Timeless Journey was today launched at The Royal Society in London by global building materials provider CEMEX and bird conservation partnership body BirdLife International.

This is the 15th edition in the CEMEX series of books which the company publishes annually with leading not-for-profit organisations to highlight key conservation issues and support fundraising programmes.

The book has been written by Dr Nigel Collar, who is renowned for his work over several decades to document and conserve threatened birds, in his capacity as Leventis Fellow in Conservation Biology at BirdLife International.

Through photographs and text, the book is a 'bittersweet' survey of the part birds play in the past and present of humankind. It examines how birds have been of value to people down the millennia, be it spiritually, decoratively, inspirationally, practically, nutritionally agriculturally, economically and environmentally, helping us with communications, navigation and survival and simply understanding ourselves.

According to H.I.H. Princess Takamodo, who is honorary president of BirdLife International and has written a foreword to the book, "The future of the world's 10,000 species of bird is linked, inextricably, to the welfare and livelihoods of people. Some 12% of those species are threatened with extinction: the loss of even one diminishes us all."

The book is part of CEMEX's commitment to sustainable development and aims to provoke constructive thinking about our obligations to building a better future by reflecting on our past and facing up to the environmental challenges we face.

Notes to editors:

CEMEX
CEMEX is a global building solutions company and leading supplier of cement, ready-mixed concrete and aggregates. In the UK, CEMEX also produces asphalt, and has a significant share of the roof tile, concrete-block paving, and concrete block sectors. Additionally, the company is the leading supplier of concrete sleepers to the rail industry and a supplier of PFA cement additives. CEMEX has a national supply network in the UK with over 500 locations, to ensure that quality building materials are available to customers locally. For more information, see www.cemex.co.uk , www.cemex.com

BirdLife International
BirdLife International is a global Partnership of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global biodiversity, working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources. BirdLife Partners operate in over one hundred countries and territories worldwide. Learn more in BirdLife Partners. BirdLife Partners collaborate on regional work programmes in every continent. For more information, see www.birdlife.org

Agrupación Sierra Madre
is a Mexican conservation organization, founded in 1989, that works to promote conservation initiatives that protect biodiversity and wilderness on the planet. Sierra Madre has published more than 20 titles in conjunction with conservation organizations worldwide such as Conservation International, IUCN, World Wildlife Fund, The Nature Conservancy, and Wildlife Conservation Society. For more information, visit www.sierramadre.com.mx