TABLE OF CONTENTS STAGE SET FOR ACTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE, MARCHI, WIRTH TELL CGCP SYMPOSIUM READERS WRITE CGCP NOW THE CONVENTION ON BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY LAND-USE AND LAND-COVER CHANGES: AN OPPORTUNITY FOR CANADA SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE ON PROBLEMS OF THE ENVIRONMENT: A RENEWED CANADIAN PRESENCE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENTAL CHANGE AND HUMAN SECURITY PROJECT STARTS UP GECHS — AN OVERVIEW MONTREAL — GREENHOUSE GAS MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES UNDER DEVELOPMENT IMAGES OF A TIGER*: HELP FOR THE ACRONYMICALLY- CHALLENGED CCP INFO THE CANADA COUNTRY STUDY: CLIMATE IMPACTS AND ADAPTATION CONFERENCE OF THE PARTIES TO THE UNITED NATIONS FRAMEWORK CONVENTION ON CLIMATE CHANGE - HIGHLIGHTS THE EARTH SYSTEM: GEOLOGY LESSONS FOR OUR FUTURE INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM "ELECTRICITY PRODUTION AND GREENHOUSE GASES : FACTS AND PERSPECTIVES" May 4-7 1997, Montreal, Québec RECENT PUBLICATIONS EVENTS CALENDAR

IMAGES of a TIGER*: Help for the Acronymically-Challenged Alwynne B. Beaudoin Canadian Association of Palynologists When reading newsletters, project reports, or scientific papers, I often feel as if I am drowning in a sea of letters. Acronyms and acronyms-of-acronyms dance on the page until the bewildered reader feels that she is reading a sort of special code, designed to keep the contents of the article secret to all but a few initiates. If this sounds like your experience too, then check out the "Dictionary of Quaternary Acronyms and Abbreviations" in the Library section of the Canadian Association of Palynologists' Web site at http://www.ualberta.ca/~abeaudoi/cap/cap.html This dictionary comprises abbreviations for societies, associations, projects (including many mentioned in the DELTA newsletters), government agencies, international organizations, and identifiers for some radiocarbon and AMS laboratories and Museums. It also includes many frequently-encountered abbreviations for geographic entities such as Canadian provinces, U.S. states and countries. Time or climate-stratigraphic units and dating methods are also catalogued. Readers will find terms that are often used in sub-disciplines of Quaternary studies but which are not always explained or included in standard earth science dictionaries. The Dictionary contains over 680 entries and is growing fast! Originally designed to speed up communication, acronyms have become a significant barrier to the clear transmission of information. I hope that this dictionary will help remove some of the mystery from those secret codes! Alwynne Beaudoin is the Canadian Association of Palynologists' Newsletter Editor and WebMaster. She can be reached at abeaudoi@gpu.srv.ualberta.ca * IMAGES = International Marine Global Study; TIGER = Terrestrial Initiative in Global Environmental Research