Merry Christmas and Happy New Year

We would like to inform you that the CEEweb office is closed between 24.12.2010 and 04.01.2011.

We wish you Happy Holidays!

See you in 2011!

We look at the same direction but do we see the same?

– conference in the name of common solution for the social and environmental problems -

Budapest, HUNGARY– 2010 the international year of biological diversity and the European year for combating poverty and social exclusion, whilst in the first part of 2011 Hungary will host the European Presidency. In this light, the CEEweb for Biodiversity international umbrella organization initiated a common coalition with social organizations to fight social and environmental problems.

The project finalizing conference, ’We look at the same direction but do we see the same?’ took place yesterday to depict the results of the project and other eco-social initiatives, and to look for further cooperation opportunities both among the NGO and thedecision-makers sectors.

2010 – environmental and social problems in the spotlight, 2011 – all eyes on Hungary

Why 2010 is important for us? The UN’s International Year of Biodiversity attempts to achieve that the biological diversity would receive more attention than ever. With this year, the international organization would like to emphasise that the conservation of our nature is for our own sake since the natural resources and the services of the ecosystem provide us for instance, with clean air and water, stable climate and pollination, which are the bases for our social well-being and our economy. Therefore, it is the today’s generation task to conserve biodiversity for the future’s generation, who can thus use them as well as we do – or even better.

2010 is also the European year to combat poverty and social exclusion. To reach these targets various subprograms exist to aid political decisions, social awareness and opinion forming as well as the active participation of people living in poverty.

Above this, in 2010 the Lisbon Strategy’s successor, the EU2020 Strategy was born, which however does not seem to learn from the mistakes of the previous one: it majorly focuses on the economy, economical growth and the recovery from the financial crisis. As a result of it, the strategy does not dedicate sufficient attention to the conservation of biodiversity and natural resources and the reduction of social inequalities.

How can a 10-year-strategy, which determines the main stream of the EU, can be fulfilled without taking into serious consideration the inequality in natural resource use and the management of environmental problems?

In the first part of 2011, Hungary will host the EU presidency. Due to this, the Hungarian NGO sector can lobby for the more emphasised consideration of the ecosocial problems, which may lead to the solution of the above mentioned problem.

Poverty and environmental problems – Common causes, common solutions?

CEEweb for Biodiversity, using the potential of 2010, initiated a unique, common project with social organizations, which aims for the creation of a common strategy to solve both environmental and social problems. CEEweb and its partners would like to influence decision-makers to put more attention on these problems and interrelations.

The ecological (climate change, pollution, loss of biodiversity) and the social problems (unemployment, economic crisis, poverty, depopulation of the countryside) mean gradually enhancing difficulties for the decision-makers and for the whole society. In order to truly tackle them and find their real solutions, not only the cure for the symptoms, a complex and holistic approach should be applied. Consequently, it is important to reveal the various, only seemingly certain sector concerned systems of the multiple problems and their drivers, and to jointly work out solutions. To aid this process, the structure of the finalizing conference of the project

Common Causes, Common Solutions was created in such ways to draw attention on the already achieved outcomes, to put highlight on the importance of common work among green and social NGOs and to demonstrate the already existing and successful projects.

The actual final product of the project, the ‘We look at the same direction but do we see the same?’ eco-social brochure was presented in the conference. The study analyses the so-called ‘holy cows’, (e.g. the limits without growth, jobs vs. environment, restrictions of accessing natural resources that prevent any kind of alterations in the system), and emphasises the importance of a paradigm change and real solutions instead of the end of pipe ones.

This was followed by a panel discussion of decision-makers from various backgrounds, which only further strengthened the importance of eco-social initiatives. ‘There is indeed a crisis, which affects both the social and the environmental sector’ said Dr. Erzsebet Gergely, the Head of the Strategic Department in the Ministry of Rural Development. ‘The solution can only be realized if both sides take steps and we work out a new value system. The wasting and bad management of our resources not only can effect the financial world – in 2010, we already lived up our fair share of natural resources by August, thus, for 4 months we basically ask for a loan from the next generation’.

The afternoon session was based on the Hungarian Climate Bill (that has been promised to be revised by the parliament in the second part of 2011) and its social aspect, whilst the following 8 examples were about successful (or less successful) eco-social examples. The projects demonstrated the importance of local trade, sustainable energy use and self-supplying systems. Besides the successes, many presenters emphasised that current legislation and the recent value system are the main obstacles on the way.

The conference was closed in such hope that the green and social NGOs can continue their cooperation, which further supports and disseminates eco-social initiatives on a Hungarian, and also, on international platforms (www.okoszocforum.hu; www.ceeweb.org).

The ultimate aim of CEEweb is that the final outcomes of the project and the emphasised cooperation should get more attention during the Hungarian Presidency, which can aid the creation of such strategies that address the drivers behind the complex problem matrix.

CEEweb Annual Meeting in Vác

Hi there! I was very excited before our Annual Meeting which took place between 3-5 November! Now when the conference is finished I can inform you about the results. About 60 participants including CEEweb members and presenters on behalf of other organizations from Europe met in charming Vác in Hungary to share ideas on the topic of Resource Use.

The first day was aimed at kicking off the Resource Cap Coalition with the involvement of interested stakeholders from all around Europe. We had a chance to listen to different presenters with wide range of experience and ideas related to the topic of the resource use and resource efficiency. After each presentation the participants were willing to ask questions and provide some useful comments. Then everyone had the opportunity to discuss the possible role, activities and obstacles of EU Resource Efficiency Flagship Initiative in smaller groups. We ended our day with dinner during which we listened to the presentations of new members. After that we had the possibility to explore Hungarian culture and try different tastes of Palinka. It was a very long and intensive day!

During the next day the members of the Working Groups discussed their activities for the next year. After these meetings we went for a long walk to explore Vác and we had a lot of fun during our excursion! The city turned out to be a nice, quiet place with a beautiful trail close to the Danube River. After the long walk we listened to the reports of the Policy Office on networking, communication and capacity building, EU and Pan-European biodiversity policies of CEEweb in 2010 and we discussed the CEEweb Working Programme for the next 2011 year. At the end of the day all participants had the pleasure to take part in cultural evening during which we tried specialities from different countries.

The third day was devoted to finalizing Work Programme for 2011 and CEEweb Annual Meeting during which the representatives of member organizations voted on new members. The day was packed with lots of discussions and comments. As a result all new applicants as well as the Working Plan for 2011 were adopted.

I would like to say that it was very interesting and timely meeting. I’ve learned a lot and I believe everybody has the same impression. Full of new information and nice memories I look forward to the next event.

Katarzyna

Please find more outcomes of the meeting here and some pics here.

Save Biodiversity Now!

Dear All,

Please check out CEEweb’s most recent press release about what we would like to be achieved in Nagoya, Japan during CBD COP10. You can read it under "Governments of the biggest biodiversity convention should act now in order to halt biodiversity loss by 2020" already in English, Hungarian, German, Polish, Serbian, Spanish, Ukrainian: http://www.ceeweb.org/viewpoint/documents/PressCorner.html And now I would like to grab also the opportunity to thank for Andriy-Taras Bashta, Katrin Gebhard, Milka Gvozdenovic, Dejan Zagorac, Monika Kotulak, Samuel Martin Sosa to make this happen.

You can follow what is happening in Nagoya at the following links:
http://www.ceeweb.org/workingareas/conventions/cbd/COP10.htm
http://www.cbd.int/cop10/
http://webcast.cop10.go.jp/

Enjoy reading and watching!
Veronika

Demonstrating sustainalble farming

Two members of CEEweb - Estonian Fund for Nature and Latvian Fund for Nature are working on a project to promote environmental-friendly farming in the project Development of Latvian-Estonian network for demonstration of enviromentally friendly farming practices.

They have chosen 10 environmental friendly farms in Latvia and 10 in Estonia to be linked in a demonstration network. Farm management plans will be prepared to advise best ways of farming in an environmental and financial sustainable ways. Farmers will have several lectures about nature values on the farms and ways to plan their finances, and also ways to tell visitors about what they are doing on their farms. Next spring farmers will have the opportunity to go to an experience exchange trip to Sweden and Latvian and Estonian farmers will visit each other. Special demonstration tools for each farm will be prepared with experts in order to depict the specific features of the agricultural lands and their owners.

During next summer everyone who is interested in this great initiatives of sustainable farming, please visit Estonia and Latvia.

Pan-European NGO preparatory meeting and CBD COP10

The Pan-European NGO CBD COP10 preparatory meeting took place 5-6 July back-to-back with a high-level biodiversity conference in Azerbaijan. CEEweb organized meetings of Pan-European NGOs to discuss a common approach and work out a a post-2010 strategic vision which emphasizes workable but firm targets to stop the loss of biodiversity. The 40 participants coming from all over the continent provided a wide range of ideas and knowledge to form a powerful consensus and recommendations.

For starting, possible joint projects for implementing nature conservation policies in the region were introduced and discussed, and as an outcome, 3 concrete proposals were worked out. After that participants focused on developing a common opinion on drivers of biodiversity loss and how to tackle them, which was presented at the High Level Conference.

This Conference was subtitled 'Biological Diversity and the Achievement of the Millennium Development Goals and took place after the preparatory meeting on July 7. High-level politicians and experts from Pan-European countries were invited to the meeting and discussed the topics in roundtable sessions where NGOs had the opportunity to present the above mentioned recommendations.

Please find more info on the preparatory meeting and the high-level conference here and some pics here.

Saro and Vera in Azerbaidjan

After the conference, Sarolta and I, Vera had the opportunity to spend 10 beautiful and pleasant days in this amazing country. During the first two days we were discovering the surrounding of the Conference venue. We were traveled along the way of the River of Gabala by a little village, called Laza, picnicked on the river shore, climbed up to the most famous waterfall of the area.

After breathing some fresh Caucasian air, we traveled to Baku where we had some sightseeing in the old town and had a swim in the Caspian see. Moreover, we had the chance to see how our Azeri colleagues spend their days with visiting an exhibition area of one of the Azeri nature conservation NGOs.

Spending some time in the hot summer, we packed up and went to the higher Caucasus fro one week. During these days, besides hard trekking up to the Shahdag peak at 4253 meters, we met different communities with different languages and with different customs, but all have one in common: never experienced hospitality.

Check out our pictures having taken during this amazing trip.

Natura 2000 workgroup meeting

We have showed no sign here on the blog but we are back now! CEEweb had quite a busy month regarding events in July, I'd like to start with reporting the Natura 2000 workgroup meeting in Bled, Slovenia. We spent three days in the beginning of July there. There were about 20 participants including CEEweb members and presenters on behalf of other organizations. We spent the first day on the topic of compensation measures under the Habitats Directive. It was a very thoughtful and edifying session as we could hear a wide range of experiences and opinions starting from the European Commission to case studies all over Western and CE Europe. Then in a short session we discussed the activity of the Working Group for next year which will soon be circulated for adding ideas.
The second day, we got an insight on the post-2010 biodiversity strategies in relation to the CEEweb general policy, after which we tried to work out some recommendations that will also be circulated. At the end of the day we received some updates on the development of Natura 2000 issues from the participating countries. Of course, all these sessions were loaded with very useful comments and conversations. We all learned a lot, I believe.
The third day, we got out from the conference room and took a site visit to the fabulous Triglav National Park. We visited a trail at the Pokljuka peat bog area, and then we headed for the Bohinj lake valley, that we first checked from above from a belvedere and then, from closer, we went for a walk at the lakeside.
I'd like to hereby thank for all the presenters and participants for the input and contribution as well as the local organizers who helped to realise this workshop.
For more info on the outcomes, please check our website.

Relaxing field trip

Hi All,

Yesterday Ildiko and me took part in an excursion to the closest Natural Park to Madrid. This park is surrounding the river called Duraton, which has created that enormous valley on the left picture. In this valley approximately 600 pairs of griffon vultures are nesting. Luckily, we had the opportunity to take a closer look on them.
This national park also contains some really picturesque villages, reminding back to the medieval ages. But these settlemenst are not only inhabited by humans, but other creatures such as the white storks too. :)

Wishing all of you a relaxing weekend,
Veronika

Conference results

Hi there! The Conference has now ended. Ildikó, Vera and mysef have done what we could to influence the processes and outcomes. We have taken the word on the preperatory NGO meeting, during the workshops and also in the plenary. We advocated for measures to be included in post 2010 biodiversity policies to tackle the drivers of biodiversity loss. As a tool, among others we have asked for the limitation of energy and resource use in the EU and globally (e.g. through setting footprint targets , energy and resource use targtes). We aslo spoke about the issues which you asked us to raise - e.g. to reserve virgin steppe networks of CEE and ECCA countries, an issue Tatiana has raised. Thanks for all those who have given comments on the position paper!

The conference was not very interactive (there was for example no possibility to give comments after the final message was read out). The recommendations coming out from the Conference are the so called "Cibeles" priorities (named after Cibeles, an ancient goddes who is a symbol of Madrid), you can find the paper here: http://www.fundacion-biodiversidad.es/europeanconference2010 together with the presentations.

To sum up: I have mixed feelings about this outcome - of course it contians many important aspects, which we can be happy about. For example it is important point that the biodiversity targets should be included in the EU 2020 strategy (the post-Lisbon economic strategy of the EU) or that further impetus should be given to the implementation of Natura 2000, so that it becomes a functioning network and doesn't exists on the map only. On the other hand there is nothing included on tackling resource use, unsusstainable consumption or anything like that, which we asked for. Indirect drivers are mentioned (possibly also as an effect of me pointing this out on one of the workshops) but unfortunetaly in an incorrect manner:
"Therefore it is necessary to integrate biodiversity into the key instruments of economic planning. This integration will make it possible to efficiently tackle the indirect and direct drivers of biodiversity loss at a global, European, national and local level." - This means in other words that biodiversity needs to be integrated with GDP or other national accounting systems. This is definetly good, but it is also sure that this alone wont stop the overuse of resources and the consequent continued loss of biodiversity.

So I think we still have some more work in front of us :).
I know Veonika and Ildikó wanted to blog as well, so I leave something to tell for them, too and stop here. Cheers! Saro

From the Madrid Biodiversity Conference

Greetings from the CEEweb staff from Spain! We are here on a high level EU Biodiversity Conference organised by the Spanish EU Presidency. The EC and MS came here to discuss post 2010 EU biodiversity policies including the new 2020 biodiversity target. To tell you the truth we do not really here new things, and if you have seen our latest e-mails regarding the Conference, this would be nothing new for you. So the point seems to be to rally support from the Member States to support an ambitious new target on the March European Council meeting.
Today I will meet Francois Wakenhut, Head of the biodiversity policy Unit at DG ENV to discuss the CEEweb position on the future target and policies. Hope it will go well :) - I will try to give you a feedback also on this later the day. Cheers, Saro

Welcome to the blog of CEEweb for Biodiversity

This blog is created to enhance cooperation in achieving our goals. We hope it will provide us with a fun way to share or views. Happy blogging!