BIODIVERSITY in EUROPE, PEBLDS and NGOs We have the past' Do we have future

1
BIODIVERSITY in EUROPE, PEBLDS and NGOsWe have
the past. Do we have future?

• Impressions of participant
• Alexei Andreev (BIG ECO-Forum)

2
INTERNATIONAL ARCHITECTURE

• General law (UNO, etc)
• Military agreements
• Regional agreements for governing
• Human rights law
• Health agreements
• Trade law and resource sharing
• Environmental law
• Physical environment and water agreements
• Biodiversity
• Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD),
• Ramsar Convention,
• Bern Convention,
• Bonn Convention with thematic agreements etc

• Links?
• Links?
• Links?

3
Environment for Europe and PEBLDS

• EfE under umbrella of the Council of Europe
  (CoE) and United Nations Economical Commission
  for Europe (UNECE) linking the environmental
  cooperation for pan-Europe !!
• PEBLDS idea had been suggested during Maastricht
  Conference, 1993 (31 states and 26 international
  organizations), as a tool for
• common implementation of CBD in the pan-Europe
  and
• implementation of the Bern Convention major
  principles in a widen space then BC covers.
• The PEBLD Strategy text and Action Plan for
  1996-2005 had been prepared by Council of Europe.
• PEBLDS creation EfE Conference, Sophia, 1995.
  
• Background
• political a clear movement to common Europe
• economical growth in EU-15 and accession
  countries, beginning of growth in NIS, after the
  bottom stage.

4
PEBLDS the YOUTH (1996-2000) major formal
features

• PEBLDS soft agreement is a field of personal
  juridical views and different comprehension in
  national juridical systems.
• Organization structure
• Council of PEBLDS government representatives,
  heads of ENEP ROfE and relevant CE division, with
  Chairman ahead
• Bureau narrowed governmental work group for
  inner consultations
• Joint Secretariat UNEP ROfE and Directorate of
  Cultural and Natural Heritage of CE
• European Center for Nature Conservation (ECNC) as
  a servicing organization
• Committee of Experts (under ECNC really).
• NGO position observers at the Council and a
  representation in Committee of Experts.

5
PEBLDS the YOUTH (1996-2000) major dealings
and developments

• Ambitious planning within 11 themes and
  Rolling Program.
• Development of conceptual documents.
• Active role of the Committee of Experts.
• Spirit of prospects.
• Comprehension of the binding role of PEBLDS and
  filling the deficit mechanisms.
• NGO role
• contribution to developments ECNC, IUCN (mainly
  in Western Europe) and
• awareness raising mainly in CEE and NIS.
• Background
• political polarizations in the pan-Europe
• economical a stagnation in EU, a growth in
  accession countries and strong fluctuation in NIS
  (crisis of 1998 and emerging from it).

6
PEBLDS the AGE CRISIS (2000-2003). Riga
Conference 2000.

• BIG ECO-Forum Statement
• Aarhus Convention assumes not only the right for
  information, but active participation of NGOs in
  the decision-making process...
• High technical and scientific level and "third
  party" position of experts from non-governmental
  sector could give a real opportunity
• Statement results the ECO Forum is invited to
  receive status of official observer in Extended
  Bureau as NGO representative, NGOs received 4
  positions in the Ext Bureau and elected also
  IUCN, ECNC and Birdlife Int.
• Started discussion on PEBLDS future idea to
  shift the responsibility for the Strategy
  implementation from the Joint Secretariat to
  European Governments.
• ECO-Forum the idea is a severe threat for the
  benefits from international cooperation,
  contradicts the European development towards
  civil society and would be a step back to the
  19th Century
• Institutional arrangements of PEBLDS have to be
  focused on reinforcement of coordination function
  and responsibility monitoring and
• directing the funding facilities towards real
  actions in situ.

7
PEBLDS the AGE CRISIS (2000-2003). Towards
Kyiv-2003

• Lack of financing and Strategy implementation.
• Active contribution of NGOs in PEBLDS activities
  
• Many suggestions (adopted and refused) in
  Strategy planning (especially during Biodiversity
  Conference Budapest-2002)
• Support for PEBLDS development and claims for
  more publicity
• Claims for governmental responsibility and
  indicatory approach
• Claims for NGO experts involvement in conceptual
  developments.
• Fight for 2010 targets formulation and ECO-Forum
  contribution.
• Re-involvement of CEEweb in the process.
• Biodiversity Resolution is adopted at Kyiv-03
  Conference and clear benchmarks established
  aiming at more responsibility of governments.
• Background
• political EU enlargement active and fight for
  influence in the pan-Europe
• economical a stagnation in EU, a growth in
  accession countries and strong fluctuation in NIS
  (crisis of 1998 and emerging from it).

8
CRISIS Development (2003-2007). Post-Kyiv period

• Planning of strategy is recognized as
  over-ambitious shift from the large thematic
  planning to planning of financed activities
  testifies to weakness.
• PEBLDS is recognized as a regional tool of CBD
  and its pan-European tool.
• 2010-targets are reflected in the CBD Work
  Programme on Protected Areas (COP 7, Decision
  VII/28, 2004).
• IUCN establishes the Countdown-2010 Initiative as
  a publicity and lobbying tool.
• PEBLDS is the common platform for NGOs, which use
  the PEBLDS as the environmental policy tool for
  motivation of conservational activities.
• Juridical and financial uncertainness of PEBLDS
  is more than clear.
• Active attempts of positioning the biodiversity
  conservation as a mitigation tool against the
  global threats as climate change.

9
Towards and after Belgrade-2007

• Lack of developments in the Committee of Experts.
  
• ECNC became less active while European
  Environmental Agency increase activities.
• New challenge is recognized governments are low
  active in non-paper implementation while strong
  official call may deter their participation.
• Discussion on PEBLDS future becomes more active
  EU representatives left the PEBLDS?
• EU concentrates more on own issues and
  neighbourhood narrow policy? CoE leaves the
  PEBLDS Secretariat?
• Belgrade Conference of 2007
• ECO-Forum tries to communicate with EU delegation
  to support PEBLDS
• ECO-Forum presents a concept document on
  biodiversity (Vision of High Nature Value
  farmland for EECCA space) during plenary for the
  first time
• Biodiversity Declaration is adopted being the
  critical doc as possible.

10
Do we have common future in biodiversity policies
and conservation?

• Major threats
• common pan-European governmental platform for
  biodiversity conservation may be lost, and
  further disintegration comes under new slogans
  instead consequent hard movement
• common NGO platform for biodiversity conservation
  may be lost
• the only biodiversity-related international
  platform for NGOs Governments dialog may be
  lost
• this all is probable reflection of democracy
  decrease.
• Background
• political new steps towards common Europe are
  possible
• economical strong economic crisis came to the
  whole region
• environmental ecological disaster became more
  visible
• civil society ecological NGOs are at threat of
  regional isolation.