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Editorial: There are now more than 100 NGOs in MED Forum!

Reports:

First official meeting between AgriBio Mediterráneo (ABM) and MED Forum. Vignola (Italy), April 7, 2000.

Workshop "A importancia dos espaços naturais para la practica da educaçao ambiental" (The importance of natural areas in the practice of environmental education). Portugal, May 21 and 22, 2000.

Trans-Mediterranean Civil Summit. Lisbon, May 22 y 23, 2000.

Heritage, Communications and the Management of Culture. For a sustainable Mediterranean. Santa Maria de la Valldigna (Valencia) May 25-27, 2000.

Meeting of Comité de Suivi. Brussels, June 13-14, 2000.

Second meeting of the correspondents of the SMAP. Brussels, June 13-14, 2000.

Seminar "Meeting the European Citizens in response to their environmental expectations" as part of the European Environment Week at Expo 2000. Hannover (Germany), June 24-25, 2000.

European Forum for Sustainable development. Arc-et-Senans (France), June 30 – July 1, 2000.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Editorial

There are now more than 100 NGOs in MED Forum!

MED Forum, Mediterranean NGO Network for Ecology and Sustainable Development, now has more than 100 members. THERE ARE NOW MORE THAN 100 OF US! Including NGOs from 23 Mediterranean countries.

There are more and more of us and we are present in more international bodies to act as the voice of the Mediterranean NGOs involved in the problems and concerns of the Mediterranean and its peoples. As a result, many organizations now participate in the activities of our network. There are already a lot of us, but we want there to be more. United together to become stronger. Stronger to advance, day by day, towards out objective: to improve and protect the Mediterranean and its peoples.

As part of our desire to construct our future, we wish to meet all our members in a major meeting of the civil society of the Mediterranean. We are now busy organizing a new Mediterranean Environmental Forum. The VI Forum, will be held in Barcelona on July 6-7, 2001. And we are also preparing the Second General Assembly of MED Forum, which will be held after the VI Forum, on July 9-10, 2001, also in Barcelona. We would like to invite all the current members, and all those organizations who are admitted in the Mediterranean Council that will be held on October 1, 2000, in Amman (Jordan), to participate actively.

MED Forum now has more than 100 members because your organization forms part of the network. Now you must take advantage of its strength by participating actively. "Connect" your work to the network. Participate in the projects, campaigns, international meetings and national activities. Visit our website and publicize it. Publicize our network’s manifestos and positions. Place your projects under the "umbrella" of MED Forum. Because MED Forum is its members. You are MED Forum.

June, 2000

Zohir Sekkal Rafael Madueño

President of MED Forum Secretary General of MED Forum

Reports

First official meeting between AgriBio Mediterráneo (ABM) and MED Forum. Vignola (Italy), April 7, 2000.

In April representatives of the Executive Committees of MED Forum and of AgriBio met in the Italian town of Vignola, the first formal contact between the two organizations. AgriBio Mediterráneo is the Mediterranean Regional Group of the IFOAM (International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements) and has 110 member organizations, including 81 from the European Union: Italy, France, Spain, Greece and Portugal; 6 from Turkey and the Middle East and 11 from North Africa. At the global level, the IFOAM brings together 770 organizations from 107 countries, organized into regional groups with their own structure and with direct links to the World Executive Committee. These regional groups are: English-speaking Africa, French-speaking Africa, Asia, the German-speaking countries, the Mediterranean countries and the European Union, and the umbrella of this organization also covers consumers’ associations, research institutes (both private and public, including universities), enterprises (with 50% biological production), etc. This first formal meeting between MED Forum and AgriBio Mediterráneo, in response to the fact that they have the same area of activity and aims – all the countries of the Mediterranean Basin and the defence of sustainable development – led to the idea of collaboration between the two networks in order to sum their efforts. The areas identified as suitable for collaboration include: the exchange of information and experience in general; sustainable tourism; preparing and presenting joint projects for funding; as well as the performance of some specific joint activity, yet to be decided, for the two organizations’ program of activities for 2001.

Workshop "A importancia dos espaços naturais para la practica da educaçao ambiental" (The importance of natural areas in the practice of environmental education). Portugal, May 21-22, 2000.

The Ecological Educational Centre Paúl do Tornada was opened on May 20, in Caldas de Rainha, Portugal. MED Forum was present at the opening and participated in the workshop on the 22^nd, presenting the two projects that MED Forum’s Environmental Education Commission, MED Educa, is co-ordinating.

Ulixes 21, for Sustainable Tourism in the Mediterranean

The Green Light for the Mediterranean.

The Paúl de Tornada Ecological Centre is a former rice warehouse that has been rehabilitated and is located next to a wetland of great ecological interest, making it a privileged site to carry out nature conservation projects and environmental education programs. The Centre is managed by the Asociación de Defensa do Paúl de Tornada-PATO.

This Workshop was called by GEOTA, an NGO member of MED Forum, which has a collaboration agreement with the PATO association.

Trans-Mediterranean Civil Summit. Lisbon 22, 23 May, 2000

MED Forum was present at the meeting organized by the Luso-American Development Foundation. The meeting was held under the auspices of the Portuguese presidency of the European Union and the debate was centred on the role of Civil Society in the EuroMediterranean process. On the last day, the declaration "Civil Society Co-operation and Partnership in the Euro-Mediterranean Region" was approved.

Heritage, Communications and the Management of Culture. For a sustainable Mediterranean. Maria de la Valldigna (Valencia), May 25-27, 2000

MED Forum was present at this meeting organized by the association "Periodistas del mediterráneo" (Journalists of the Mediterranean), which was supported by the Autonomous Government of Valencia and UNESCO’s Mediterranean program. The meeting was attended by the Director General of UNESCO’s Mediterranean program, Gérard de Puygmére, who spoke in favour of cultural investment and spatial diversity and of the importance of networks in opposing secrecy, as well as insisting on the importance of support from public and private institutions in promoting actions of solidarity in the Mediterranean. Professor Edgar Morin spoke on "Thinking the Mediterranean and Mediterraneanizing thought".

MED Forum insisted on the importance of the unusualness of the Mediterranean landscape as a cultural product and the need to defend these special Mediterranean features. It also stressed the importance of the work of NGOs and the different networks.

Meeting of the Comité de Suivi. Brussels, June 13-14, 2000.

The Comité de Suivi, taking advantage of the meeting of the correspondents of the SMAP (Short and Medium-term Priority Environmental Action Program - Euro-Mediterranean process) to which they were invited, held an ordinary working meeting to deal with the following items,; the joint declaration of the members of the Comité de Suivi for the meeting of the SMAP correspondents (June 13-14, 2000) prepared by the MIO and improved by e-mail by the other members, some times on the recent EuroMediterranean Forum on Water (Brussels, June 7, 2000), the preparations for the EuroMediterranean Civil Forum in Marseille (November 10-12, 2000) whose environmental section is being coordinated by ENDA Tiers Monde, the response to our letter to the European Commissioners Prodi, Wallström and Patten with respect to the paralyzation of the SMAP, and other future projects of the Comité de Suivi.

Second meeting of the correspondents of the SMAP. Brussels, June 13-14, 2000.

The first meeting of the SMAP correspondents was held in November, 1998, a year after the approval of this program in Helsinki in November 1997. The idea was that these meetings should be held annually, and the second was planned for November 1999. It was finally held with a delay of 7 months, and was presided by Fernand THURMES of the Directorate General of Environment of European Commission (DG Environment). The meeting allowed the participants to explain the work they had done, at the regional level, for the DG Environment (Athena MOURMOURIS) and for the representatives of the 15 + 12 countries in the Europrocess (reports from 20 national focal points, and the absence of Greece, United Kingdom, Ireland, Denmark, Finland, Austria and Syria)., but the meeting’s main aim was to call the second meeting of the SMAP which was foreseen for November, 1997 (Athena MOURMOURIS). The Comité de Suivi, of which MED Forum forms part, participated as an invited observer and with a joint declaration, in which it denounced the delays the process has accumulated (and which is printed below).

Brussels, 13-14 June 2000

We, the members of the CdS* , would like to thank the European Commission for inviting us to participate in this meeting.

We would also like to:

reaffirm our commitment to the objective of sustainable development called for under the Barcelona Declaration, the Work Programme and the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership Process;

emphasize the need for greater and more essential participation of civil society in the whole process as a key element leading to regional understanding, efficient co-operation, long lasting peace and sustainable development around the Mediterranean;

make clear that:

the CdS and the Mediterranean NGOs in general, welcomed the initiative of the European Commission to undertake the co-ordination of the SMAP as a framework for co-operation in the field of environment and sustainable development, within the Euro-Mediterranean Partnership;

Prior to and since the last SMAP Correspondents Meeting (Brussels, 16/11/98) the CdS has on many occasions proven its commitment and support of the efforts made by the European Commission in the implementation of the SMAP and has often congratulated the Commission for its efforts in ensuring an innovative process of consultation with NGOs.

 

At the same time however,

we would like to convey, this time with more emphasis, our concern and disappointment in the apparent lack of any concrete progress or tangible commitment on the part of the Commission to reform its procedures, speed up the process and make the necessary human resources available for the proper management of this Program.

We feel that the selection process left out important projects, while the seven initiatives selected more than a year ago have not been formally approved and funded yet.

We are concerned about the cut down in the budget proposals initially submitted by the seven projects, as this implies for the implementing parties financial burden, particularly for those projects where joint commitments were taken with local authorities.

We regret that only one call for proposals has been published under MEDA I, contrary to what was committed in Helsinki.

We therefore urge all the competent bodies to:

Support the SMAP by devoting higher financial resources both in the regional and bilateral envelopes of MEDA.

Publish the new Call for Tenders based on revised SMAP criteria, aimed to reduce the difficulties faced by the NGOs and others in formulating and submitting proposals. The issue of public awareness and information on environmental matters should be given much higher priority and support.

Create a pre-proposal submission phase and provide financial and technical support for project development by NGOs and local authorities.

Facilitate the access of Mediterranean Environmental and Development NGOs to the funds available by:

Simplifying the administrative procedures

Restricting some financial technicalities (e.g. bank guarantees) and dispensing the required governmental approval (especially in the case of regional projects) for NGO projects, due to the additional delays incurred. As a decentralized initiative in its original conception - open to civil society and local authority partners - this program, aimed to support regional initiatives of common environmental interest, should not be handicapped by heavy National institutional procedures. Attention should also be given to avoiding any duplication in the submission of projects.

To raise awareness about the SMAP at both official and public level. At the public level we suggest the launching of adequate information campaigns to raise awareness of the significance and potential impacts of the SMAP, as an original regional instrument envisioned to deal with the environmental dimension of the Euro Mediterranean Partnership both in EU and non-EU countries.

To act upon the need for further transparency in the next round of the project selection process, and more coherence within the Commission policy guidelines for project submission, as well as between the Commission and its Delegations in Partner Countries, when applicable and possible.

To facilitate, through the SMAP implementation, more and effective synergies with other Mediterranean programs and Multilateral/Intergovernmental institutions in support to the strategy of the Mediterranean Action Plan.

Put forward in the current revision of MEDA the implementation of the supportive measures indicated in Chapter 6 of the SMAP as a tool to promote sustainable development and environmental integration in the whole process.

Finally, we are confident that the projects that will be soon initiated, after the release of the respective funding allocated to them, will demonstrate the pertinence of the SMAP, as an innovative and operational oriented mechanism to the service of a Mediterranean concerted approach of the environmental constraints; as we reiterate our appeal for a prompt launching of the 1999 call for tenders to enable within reasonable deadlines the submission of proposals and more fluid procedures in their treatment.

Seminar: "Meeting the European Citizens in response to their environmental expectations" as part of the European Environment Week at Expo 2000. Hannover (Germany), June 24-25, 2000.

The seminar "Meeting the European Citizens in response to their environmntal expectations" was held at Expo 2000 in Hannover as part of European Environment Week. During the sessions, organized by DG Environment, the existence of common environmental problems in Europe was discussed, as was the existence of specific problems in certain European areas, such as the Mediterranean region. This was pointed out by MED Forum as well as by other members from southern Europe, who made clear the need for the input of distinct initiatives, such as integrated coastal management, integrated water management, the struggle against desertification and progress towards a sustainable tourism policy.

European Forum for Sustainable Development. Arc-et-Senans (France). June 30-July 1, 2000

On June 30 and July 1, NGOs belonging to the European Environment Bureau (EEB) and of MED Forum as well as representatives from India, the United States, Ghana, Senegal and Central and Eastern European Countries (CEECs), debated in Arc-et-Senans (France) the European Union’s 6^th Environment Programme, sustainable development and the expansion of the European Union. MED Forum made clear the need for the 6^th Environment Program to be quantified, scheduled, and assessable in a period of 10 years. The need to regionalize the European Union’s Environment policy was also raised, as was its linkage top different word realities, which should lead to a consideration of the main problems of the Mediterranean region. MED Forum specified that these were to apply integrated coastal management, a sustainable tourism policy, integrated water management, and the struggle against desertificationa and drought. There was criticism of the fact that the European Union’s Mediterranean policy is not considered a major priority or for the governments of the Mediterranean countries in the EU, as shown by the failure of the SMAP and the slowness with which the MEDA regulations are being applied. As a conclusion to the far-reaching debate on tourism, a group was formed, consisting of MED Forum, EcoMediterrània (Spain) GEOTA (Portugal) and Friends of Nature (Austria) in order to prepare a document that brings together the lines of action on tourism in Europe.