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“Little progress” in Chapter 27 issues in 2013, according to EC

Serbian first priority is accession to EU.

EC Delegation in Serbia, present to relevant CSOs, on October 18, 2013 , Serbia Progress Report 2013, in which the Commission services present their assessment of what Serbia as the candidate country has achieved over the last year. Presentation on 2013 Reports’ economic chapters is followed by discussion by  CSOs representatives, including the NGOs as the one of category of CSOs. Environmental Chapter have great attention in discussion part of the meeting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Related to Chapter 27, overall EC conclusions is “little progress”.

Although there are a lot of challenges ( EU Enlargement Factsheets – Energy, Climate Change and Environment ), EC conclusion is in some relevant segments different that ENV.net Study (ENV.net-Study-Extended-Summary-June-2013  ).

ENV.net Serbia Team prepared document: Reading of 2013 Progress Report for Serbia and Strategy by ENV.net Serbia Team ( Serbia 2013 Progress Report and Strategy – Reading by ENV.net Serbia Team )Resulting key words are : Group 1 : civil society organizations, empowered civil society, Dialogue between decision makers and stakeholders , Public awareness, public participation and consultation process; Group 2: sustainable growth, synergies between environment and economy, emissions to air /air quality , waste management , environmental governance , climate change, protected areas, water management,  chemicals management, environmental impact assessment, integral pollution and prevention control (industrial emissions); Group 3: implementation of adopted legislation, Intra- and inter-institutional cooperation, proper functioning of the core institutions, coordination of sectoral policies; Group 4: the skills gap, education and training.

Some background information for SERBIA: candidate – applied in 2009, obtained candidate status in March 2012. The EU-facilitated dialogue between Belgrade and Pristina was launched in March 2011. The First agreement of principles governing normalisation of relations was reached with Kosovo in April 2013. The momentum of reforms has also been reinvigorated in Serbia. The European Council decided in June 2013 to open accession negotiations. The first Intergovernmental Conference on Serbia’s accession negotiations will be held in January 2014 at the very latest, after the Council adopts the negotiating framework, which was proposed by the Commission in July 2013. In the meantime, the ‘screening’ began in September 2013. The Stabilisation and Association Agreement (SAA) entered into force on 1 September. – see more

 

 

Education for Sustainable Development: UNESCO call for contributions

The monitoring and evaluation process for the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) is designed to capture a variety of activities related to ESD and take stock of the growth of ESD throughout the DESD. The final assessment and report will summarize and highlight the accomplishments of the DESD, convey lessons learnt and point the way for post-Decade efforts.

UNESCO call for inputs by answering before 31 October 2013 the online questionnaire

 

Participation at UNEP Global Major Groups and Stakeholder Forum, Global Ministerial Environment Forum and High-Level Gender Forum

Environmental Ambassadors for Sustainable Development  participated at the “Global Major Groups and Stakeholders Forum (GMGSF-14)”, and “The First Universal Session of the Governing Council/ Global Ministerial Environment Forum (GC-27/GMEF),” Nairobi, 16-22 February 2013.  Ministers meeting for the first time under universal membership of 193 member states- again as a result of the decisions taken and adopted last year at Rio+20 and the UN General Assembly later in the year- adopted a welter of other decisions relating to the way UNEP will operate and work as the global platform for environmental policy-making and action over the coming years and decades.  Governments called for  the transformation of the existing Governing Council into a UN  Environment Assembly of UNEP and to build stronger links between UNEP’s science-based Global Environment Outlook process and its ministerial meetings – further implementing the call  by member states at Rio + 20to strengthen the science-policy interface. 

Among the wealth of other decisions taken at the first Universal Membership of the UNEP Governing Council were: 1.  A UNEP-led consortium will host and coordinate the Climate Technology Centre and Network (CTCN) which will be the implementing arm of the Technology Mechanism of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), 2. The CTCN will work on leap-frogging the technical and financial hurdles to the even greater take-up of clean and renewable energies to low carbon tranportation and energy efficient buildings, 3. Full operationalization of a decade-long initiative to decouple economic growth from unsustainable use of natural resources and pollution generation-the 10 Year Framework of Programmes for Sustainable Consumption and Production Patterns (10YFP for SCP), 4. The UNEP-hosted initiative will assist countries in areas from sustainable public procurement, lifestyles and education to sustainable buildings and construction and sustainable tourism, including ecotourism – again bringing from outcome to implementation other key aspects of the Rio+20 Future We Want, 5. Governments also decided to convene in October this year an intergovernmental diplomatic conference to formally adopt the Minamata Convention on Mercury that was agreed  in January in Geneva under a UNEP-facilitated negotiation-again a further implementation of the Rio+20 outcome document.

Over 1300 participants from 147 countries, including 80 ministers, representatives of UN agencies, international organizations, academia, NGOs, business and industry, and women and youth organizations attended the first Universal Session of the GC following the decision of the United Nations General Assembly to strengthen and upgrade UNEP, as called for in the Rio+20 outcome document. Delegates adopted 13 decisions, on inter alia:

–       the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services (IPBES);

–       coordination across the UN system, including the Environment Management Group (EMG);

–       oceans;

–       sustainable consumption and production;

–       the green economy in the context of sustainable development;

–       advancing justice, governance and law;

–       state of the environment; and

–       chemicals and wastes.

The GC adopted a decision on institutional arrangements that, inter alia, invites the UN General Assembly to rename UNEP’s governing body “UN Environment Assembly,” and provides that the body “will ensure” the active participation of all relevant stakeholders and explore new mechanisms to promote transparency and effective engagement of civil society in its work and that of its subsidiary bodiesinter alia, by: developing by 2014 a process for stakeholder accreditation and participation that builds on the existing rules of procedure and takes into account the inclusive modalities of the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) and other relevant UN bodies.

The day before the Governing Council got underway, the Network of Women Ministers and Leaders for the Environment (NWMLE) and UNEP hosted the second High-Level Gender Forum. Prof Andjelka Mihajlov participates, by invitation to “Gender Forum” as a member of the “Network of Environmental Women Ministers and Leaders”, as the former Minister for Protection of Natural Resources and Environment.  The forum participants called upon ministers and environmental leaders to have dedicated officials for coordination of related gender and environment programmes and agreed to send a consolidated proposal on gender actions to be forwarded for consideration by UN Secretary General’s High-level Panel of Eminent Persons on the Post 2015 Development Agenda. The women ministers also requested nations to support the ratification of the Minamata convention on Mercury, which opens for signing in October.

More about meetings at  www.unep.org .  Moments from EASD participation are in Galleries of pictures. These activities are foreseen as the important international cooperation activities.

Prior to this, organisation participate at Rio+20 Conference.

RIO+20

”Environmental Ambassadors for Sustainable Development” , as UN accredited organization participate at 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, as well as on side events.

Organisation participated in preparation of study Study on Achievements and Perspectives towards a Green Economy and Sustainable Growth in Serbia.

The Study has been prepared to support the Government of Serbia in its preparations for the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable development, which is being held in Brazil in June 2012.

 

RIO+20

Rio+20

Agenda 2030 and SDGs in the focus of EASD work 

Recognition and encouragement for further work: special consultative status in UN ECOSOC for our organisation

Consultation with UN/UNDP in Serbia

Post Rio+20 busy July 2015

We participate!

First European-wide Sustainable Development Week

SDGs – SDSN members activities

UNEA 2014

World Environment Day – Raise the voice!

”Environmental Ambassadors for Sustainable Development” , as UN accredited organization participate at 2012 UN Conference on Sustainable Development, as well as on side events.

Organisation participated in preparation of study Study on Achievements and Perspectives towards a Green Economy and Sustainable Growth in Serbia.

The Study has been prepared to support the Government of Serbia in its preparations for the Rio+20 United Nations Conference on Sustainable development, which is being held in Brazil in June 2012.