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The
Mediterranean Information Office for Environment,
Culture and Sustainable Development, is a
Federation of Mediterranean Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs)
for Environment and Development. MIO-ECSDE acts as a technical and
political platform for the intervention of NGOs in the
Mediterranean scene. In co-operation with Governments,
International Organisations and other socio-economic partners,
MIO-ECSDE plays an active role for the protection of the
environment and the promotion of the sustainable development of
the Mediterranean Region and its countries.
Background
MIO-ECSDE
became a Federation of Mediterranean NGOs in March 1996. Its roots
go back to the early 80's, when the expanding Mediterranean
membership of the European Community encouraged the European
Environmental Bureau (EEB) to form its Mediterranean
Committee, supported by Elliniki
Etairia (the Hellenic Society for the Protection of the
Environment and the Cultural Heritage). The Mediterranean
Information Office (MIO), was established in 1990 as a network of
NGOs, under a joint project of EEB and Elliniki Etairia and in
close collaboration with the Arab Network of Environment and
Development (RAED). The expansion of MIO-ECSDE's Mediterranean NGO
network and the increasing request for constructive and structured
NGO opinions and representation in Mediterranean and International
Fora, led to the transformation of MIO-ECSDE to its current NGO
Federation status.
Its main
Objective are...
To
protect the Natural Environment (flora and fauna, biotopes,
forests, coasts, natural resources, climate) and the Cultural
Heritage (archaeological monuments traditional settlements,
cities, etc.) of the Mediterranean Region. The ultimate goal of
MIO-ECSDE is to promote Sustainable Development in a peaceful
Mediterranean.
Major tools
and methods used by MIO-ECSDE in order to achieve its objectives
are the following:
- Promotion of the understanding
and collaboration among the people of the Mediterranean,
especially through their NGOs, between NGOs and Governments,
Parliaments, Local Authorities, International Organisations
and socio-economic actors of the Mediterranean Region at all
levels.
- Assistance for the
establishment, strengthening, co-operation and co-ordination
of Mediterranean NGOs and facilitation of their efforts by
ensuring the flow of appropriate information among relevant
bodies.
- Promotion of education,
research and study on Mediterranean issues, by stimulating
collaboration between NGOs and scientific and/or academic
institutions.
- Raising of public awareness on
crucial Mediterranean environmental and social issues, through
campaigns, publications, exhibitions, presentations, etc.
MIO-ECSDE Activities
The MIO-ECSDE Secretariat contacts Members, as well as, the
wider NGO network it co-operates with, regularly through its Internal
Information Bulletin (8 issues per year), its well known
newsletter Sustainable
Mediterranean (co-published with RAED and EEB) and through
its various
publications it
produces.
MIO-ECSDE has contributed already substantially to the capacity
building of Mediterranean NGOs through its international
residential training workshops on environmental issues for leading
members and staff of Mediterranean NGOs. Such workshops take place
every year focussing progressively on more specific issues.
-
Promotion and Drafting of Common
NGO Policies
As the
major and most representative Federation of Mediterranean NGOs,
MIO-ECSDE has managed to promote common NGO policies and to
reinforce the collective voice of the Environmental and
Development citizens' organisations at international fora and
conventions. In several cases, MIO-ECSDE has drafted and proposed
common NGO policies, position papers and memoranda adopted by the
widest possible NGO Environmental movement and has represented the
NGOs in major international conferences (Ministerial,
Intergovernmental, etc.) and processes, presenting the NGO
Declarations and views.
MIO-ECSDE
has organised, alone or with other NGOs, a large number of
particularly successful and influential conferences and meetings
aiming to consolidate the NGO views on critical issues, such as
Sustainable Development (Athens, 21-24 November 1991), Water
(Rome, 24-27 October 1992; Athens, 17-19 March 1994, Athens, 2-4
November 2000), Agenda MED-21 (Tunis, 27-28 October 1994), Waste
(Cairo 6-8 Decemebr 1999, Athens, 17-18 April 2000)
Euro-Mediterranean Cooperation and the Barcelona Convention
(Cairo, 26-27 April 1992; Barcelona, 2-4 June 1995; Stuttgart,
14-15 April, 1999), Environmental Education (Athens, 26-30 June
1995; Thessaloniki, 6-7 December 1997; Athens, 18-19 December
1998), Solid Wastes (Cairo, 6-8 December 1999), Trends in
Production, Uses and Policies on Heavy Metal (EUPHEMET) (Athens,
17-18 April 2000) etc. It has also supported the organisation of a
number of Roundtable discussions throughout the Mediterranean on
some of the aforementioned issues, as well as, others such as
public participation and funding mechanisms for NGOs.
- International Collaborations
MIO-ECSDE collaborates closely with the
Commission of the EU, MAP/UNEP, UNESCO and other International and
Regional Governmental Organizations (UNDP, IFAD, METAP, World
Bank, EIB) and existing scientific and other Networks and
Federations (EEB, RAED, FoE, WWF, RAMSAR Convention, MED Forum,
CIESM, MEDCITIES, MEDMARAVIS, MEDPAN, MEDWET, IUCN, GWP MED/TAC,
CREE etc.).
MIO-ECSDE has been a member of the
Mediterranean Commission on Sustainable Development (MCSD), which
was established in the framework of the Barcelona Convention and
acted as Task Manager of its Thematic Group on "Information,
Awareness, Environmental Education and Participation", while
it participated, as a member, in several other thematic groups. It
is accredited by the United Nation's International Convention to
Combat Desertification (INCD).
MIO-ECSDE participated from the very
beginning in the setting up and development of three loose
cooperation schemes: The first one focuses on Euro-Mediterranean
Partnership issues. It is known as "Comite de Suivi" and
comprises of seven NGO networks active at European and
Mediterranean level (EEB, ENDA, FoE, MedForum, MIO-ECSDE, RAED,
WWF). The second one, called "MEDTAC" (Mediterranean
Technical Advisory Committee), comprises of the organisations:
CEDARE, CIHEAM-Bari Institute, IME, MAP/Blue Plan, METAP,
MIO-ECSDE, MWN, MEDWET and focuses on the crucial issue of water,
in the Mediterranean region as part of the Global Water
Partnership (GWP).
MIO-ECSDE is also one of the four partners
of the European Seas Environmental Cooperation (ESEC).
- Increase of Public Awareness, Participation and Consensus
Building
MIO-ECSDE launches and coordinates awareness campaigns with the
collaboration of its member organizations on critical issues like
water management (Mediterranean Water Year), waste issues (Mediterranean
Action Day) and the creation of a Mediterranean Environment
Fund ("$/EURO per
ticket" campaign).
The participatory processes that MIO-ECSDE has initiated among
NGOs since 1991 have contributed considerably to the consensus
building, mutual trust and solidarity in the Mediterranean and to
the improvement of North-South and East-West cooperation.
Recognising the crucial importance of awareness and
participation in the achievement of goals for both social and
economic well-being of the Mediterranean people, MIO-ECSDE has
invested considerable time in research, development and
amelioration of participatory techniques leading to consensus
among social partners and finally to action.
MIO-ECSDE was the Mediterranean partner of the European
research project "Sustainable Development for Cities and
Regions-SUDECIR" (other partners: IEEP-Brussels,
Taurus-Trier, Stenum-Graz) which developed a methodological
framework for regional sustainable development, applied on a pilot
basis on selected study areas. MIO-ECSDE's focus was on the
formulation of tourism sustainability plans and emphasis was given
on Mediterranean islands. MIO-ECSDE applied the SUDECIR
methodology on Rhodes island. This expertise was used also in the
framework of CAMP/Malta carried out with the help of PAP-RAC of
UNEP/MAP. Now it is further transmitted and disseminated to
MIO-ECSDE members through various collaboration schemes.
In cooperation with UNESCO and the University of Athens
MIO-ECSDE organized in 1995 the Inter-regional Workshop on
Reorienting Environmental Education for Sustainable Development
(Athens, June 26-30,1995). The results of the workshop were used
as the basis of the International Conference on "Environment
and Society: Education and Public Awareness for
Sustainability" (Thessaloniki, 8-12 December 1997) - held 20
Years After Tbilisi. This major Conference, attended by 1400
participants from 84 countries was, co-organised by UNESCO and the
Greek Government, while its Secretarial support was undertaken by
MIO-ECSDE together with the University of Athens. The most visible
outcomes of the Conference were the drafting and the unanimous
acceptance of the 'Thessaloniki
Declaration' and a series of positions included in the volume
(900 pp) of the Conference
proceedings.
These fundamental documents include, amongst others, principles
and proposals through which the follow up process is facilitated.
MIO-ECSDE, as a follow-up, organised a Mediterranean Workshop
on Promotion of Education and Public Awareness for Environment and
Sustainability in the Mediterranean, Athens, 18-19 December 1998,
where the creation of a network of Environmental Educators
throughout the Mediterranean cooperating with NGOs was decided. A
visible product of this initiative is the education project of
MIO-ECSDE on water which is carried out jointly by six of its NGO
members in six Mediterranean countries.
Contact
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