Transition to the Green Economy Civil Society Actions. Marta Szigeti Bonifert Executive Director

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1 Transition to the Green Economy Civil Society Actions Marta Szigeti Bonifert Executive Director

2 REC as a catalyst An international organisation, the Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe (REC) is like vitamin C, a catalyst that accelerates sustainable solutions in partnership with governments and non-governmental stakeholders. Our projects focus on helping communities to strengthen environmental governance, shift to a low-carbon/green economy, build resilience to climate change, manage natural resources, and develop capacities for future environmental stewardship. With 26 years of experience in supporting the region s transition to democracy and sustainability, the REC is a flexible mechanism for cooperation in Central and Eastern Europe and beyond, delivering results through its office and expert network.

3 The REC today is an international organisation with head office located in Szentendre, Hungary is legally based on a charter signed by 32 countries and the European Commission has a regional presence and offices in CEE with an international staff of approx. 160 employees runs projects in EU Member States (in CEE and EU-28); EU Enlargement Countries; Eastern Partnership Countries; and beyond Since 1990 the REC implemented more than 2000 projects in the value of 250+ million euro

4 Strategy for The REC works for the following results: Strengthened environmental governance Accelerated low-emission development Improved natural resources management with relevant stakeholders in its partner regions

5 Political mandates of the REC 2015 Declaration: SEE 2020 Strategy Eastern Partnership EU Policies Circular and Low-Carbon Economy Post-2015 Development Agenda

6 Supporting the 2030 SD Agenda A preliminary study was undertaken in the REC to review its track record vis-á-vis the SDGs and their targets. The exercise shows an overlap of 17 out of 17 goals. The REC has a track record and expertise in 28% of the targets 47 out of the 169 targets. Particularly strong areas are environmental health, education and capacity building, water management, sustainable cities, sustainable consumption and production, climate mitigation and adaptation, ecosystems, governance, and partnerships. On April 2016, the REC organised the Regional Consultation on the Implementation of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in Central and Eastern Europe, based on which a position paper was launched in May 2016 that fed into the EC s European Political Strategy Centre Strategic Note by Karl Falkenberg, Senior Adviser for Sustainable Development to the President of the EC

7 Sustainable Development Green Economy Source: EEA

8 Green Economy Resource Efficiency & Circular Economy Source: EEA

9 Green economy requires technological and social innovation

10 Drivers and enablers of green economy Societies can move towards green economy if the following drivers and enablers are in place Some are a given: Natural assets Size of market Land and resource availability Others are possible to influence and develop: Political will Strong and efficient institutions (governance) Smart policies Financing environmental protection expenditure, cohesion policy, etc. Territorial drivers i.e territorial connectivity; urban-rural relationships

11 Transition to a greener economy The role of civil society is key in: Changing the economic paradigm Boosting changes in consumer behaviour Exploring social and technological innovation potentials Testing, piloting new approaches Enhancing connectivity between research and policy-making Triggering policy responses (pushing for new laws, programmes, policies or strategies) Watchdog role Building capacity Identifying win-win opportunities Supporting information exchange and awareness raising

12 Investing in CSOs skills and knowledge Organisational development and leadership programme Organisational self-assessment and action plan CSO leaders course Internship/work shadow, study tours Young environmental leaders course Interactive capacity building training on public participation: on decision making, advocacy, lobbying, watchdogging, activism and e-activism Capacity building training on energy and SD energy policy, energy-saving and efficiency, renewable energy smart energy management solutions CSO Grants

13 Selected success stories of 10 years SECTOR I, SECTOR II in South Eastern Europe SENSE, CSOnnect in Serbia LINK in Ukraine STREAM in Belarus and Moldova ACHIEVE, SENIOR A, SENIOR B in Albania CSO Grants in Slovenia ENVSEC in Central Asia, Eastern Europe, South Caucasus, South Eastern Europe Key partners of the REC: Austria, European Commission, EEA and Norway Grants, Finland, Sweden, USA

14 Sector I SECTOR I - Supporting Environmental Civil Society Organisations in South Eastern Europe supported by SIDA ( ) Regional environmental civil society support programme implemented by REC and financed by Sida Budget: 3.7 MEUR (1.7 MEUR for CSO grants) Scope: regional and national Objectives: contribute to the development of strong and democratic environmental civil society in South Eastern Europe in order to make positive impact on society, its sustainable development and better living conditions in urban areas. Examples: Subitica knows composting (CSO Mladi i igra), Recycling- towards sustainable development (CSO CEBI)

15 Sector II SECTOR II - Supporting Environmental Civil Society Organisations in South Eastern Europe ( ), financed by SIDA Budget: EUR, with EUR for CSO grants Objectives: support development of dynamic and democratic environmental civil society, with the goal to make positive impact on society towards sustainable development and improvement of living conditions in urban areas. Components: capacity building programmes, supporting networking activities and dialogue with decision makers, supporting environmental media CSO project support: 11 projects/grants supported ( EUR grant), increased impact through shift from supporting individual CSOs to supporting consortia of CSOs. Grants duration: 12 months Topics: Waste management, water management, energy efficiency, sustainable consumption, sustainable transport, climate changes

16 Supporting Environmental CSOs in Belarus and Moldova Master Class Civil society development Young Environm ental Leaders Program- YEL! 52 BY CSOs 54 MD CSOs Study visit Capacity Building - 3 main formats 106 CSOs - 57 grants delivered

17 Key example: Local environmental action planning

18 SENSE SENSE - Supporting Environmental Civil Society Organisations in Serbia ( ) Resource partner: Sida Budget: 2.2 MEUR ( EUR for CSO grants) Grants: two calls for grants in 2012 and 2014 Objectives: establish functional dialogue between environmental CSOs and governmental sector; CSOs proactively impact decision-making at agenda setting, policy drafting, decision making, policy implementation or reformulation. Components: financial support (CSO grants), capacity building (master courses, study tours to EU), dialogue and networking, supporting environmental media

19 Environmental Civil Society Support Programme for Serbia Resource partner: Sida Budget: 1.9 MEUR ( EUR for CSO core grants) Objectives: empower CSOs to participate in environmental policy development and decision making in an active, effective and gender-sensitive manner; play an active role in Serbia's EU accession process; monitor and evaluate environmental project implementation at regional, national and local level. Implemented by the REC through the REC Country Office Serbia Website:

20 REC s Framework Programme in Ukraine Programme Activities: WP1: Local action planning for Sustainable Development, Energy Security and Civic Engagement in Communities in Ukraine WP2: Civil Society Support WP3: Education for sustainable development WP4: Public Environmental and Energy- Related Awareness, Education and Training in local communities of Ukraine Activities supported by: U.S. Department of State Norwegian Ministry of Climate and Environment Dutch Ministry of Infrastructure and Environment Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affaires Italian Ministry of Environment, Land and Sea

21 REC in the Environment and Security Initiative (ENVSEC) ENVSEC Initiative - reduction of environment and security risks through strengthened cooperation in four regions: Central Asia, Eastern Europe, Southern Caucasus and South Eastern Europe Focus areas: natural resources; climate change; hazardous substances; information and participation REC hosts ENVSEC Regional Desk for South Eastern Europe REC chaired ENVSEC in 2013 and 2014

22 Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) REC tools and programmes for ESD: Green Pack and Green Pack Junior multimedia educational tools for school teachers and pupils, launched in total 18 countries and 20 languages for school teachers and 4.5 million pupils Green Steps for civil society organisations and families Sustainable Development Academy for government officials and the business community Tom Garvey Young Environmental Leaders Programme for interns and fellows within the REC office network SEEDLING -Aims to strengthen education, capacity building and awareness raising of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the region of South Eastern Europe; developing an online educational tool, and by means of regional cooperation and networking among decision makers, educators and teachers. The pictures illustrate the REC Green Pack and a map of REC ESD programmes. The Green Pack was selected in the UNESCO World Conference on ESD in Nagoya, Japan, November 2014, among one of the world s best educational tools for sustainability.

23 Civil society for Green Economy CSOs crucial partners in promoting green economy CSOs drivers for innovation and efficiency in sustainable development CSOs agent for societal transformation and awareness raising CSOs equal, skillful and knowledge stakeholder to planning and decision making CSOs leader in local and national environmental reforms REC is providing capacity building to enable CSOs play their important roles

24 Follow the REC