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Каспинфо май 2000 |
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Название: Информационный бюллетень ИСАР-Центральная Азия, на англ. яз Главные Пункты: В первом выпуске бюллетеня: 1. Обращение директора ISAR-Central Asia, Дженнифер Гейбл. 2. Объявление о семинаре на тему <Неправительственные организации и транснациональные корпорации>, проводимом в рамках Каспийской программы ISAR. 3. Объявление о проведении второго раунда программы <Периферия>. 4. Анонс встречи НПО, работающих со Всемирным Банком и МВФ (Прага). 5. Анонс семинара #Окружающая среда в новостях# в Лондоне. (12.05.2000) Полный Текст Информационный бюллетень ИСАР-Центральная Азия, на англ. яз ISAR - Central Asia / Центральная Азия Initiative for Social Action Initiative and Renewal in Eurasia Институт Содействия Социальным Инициативам в Евразии 128 Shagabutdinov Str., Apt. 7, Almaty, 480012, Kazakhstan, Tel/Fax: +7 (3272) 67 71 88, 67 86 20 E-mail: root@isar.almaty.kz Казахстан, 480012, г. Алматы, ул. Шагабутдинова 128, кв. 7, Тел/Факс: +7 (3272) 67 71 88, 67 86 20 E-mail: root@isar.almaty.kz ISAR NEWS, # 1 MAY 2000 Dear Friends, It is with great pleasure that we send you the first issue of ISAR-Central Asia's monthly information bulletin. The bulletin will be distributed during the first week of each month to NGOs that are working on environmental issues. The English language version of the bulletin will be sent to international organizations and our partners abroad. The bulletin will provide news about the activities of ISAR-Central Asia--our programs, seminars, trainings, and other events. Along with news about ISAR, each issue will contain information from other organizations about events and resources that may be of interest to NGOs and other readers. We look forward to receiving your comments and suggestions for the publication. The bulletin will be sent to all who desire it free of charge. If you would like to receive ISAR News, please send a request, including your e-mail address and the name of your organization, to the address: zarema@isar.almaty.kz or root@isar.almaty.kz. Best wishes, Zarema Imenova Information Coordinator ISAR-Central Asia In this issue: 1. Letter from ISAR-Central Asia director Jennifer Gable. 2. Announcement of the upcoming seminar "NGOs and Transnational Corporations" that will take place through ISAR's Caspian Program. 3. Announcement of the second grant round in ISAR's Periferia Program. 4. Announcement of a seminar in Prague for NGOs working on World Bank and IMF issues. 5. Announcement of the seminar "Environment in the News" in London. 1. Letter from ISAR-Central Asia director Jennifer Gable Dear Friends, I am writing for two reasons today. The first is to announce that starting with this letter, we will be sending monthly newsletters to everyone on our mailing list either by e-mail or post with updates on what ISAR is doing in the region, and also with any new information we may find that would be useful to you. We are also happy to announce that our programs are growing, and we hope that many of you will work with us in new ways in the upcoming months. You can read further for more information about our activities. Please feel free to write with any suggestions or ideas you may have for us regarding any of our programs. The second reason I am writing to you today is to pass on some both happy and sad news. I have decided to leave ISAR, and to leave Central Asia, to pursue a teaching career in the USA. On June 2nd, I will begin a program at the University of New Mexico that will result in my becoming a high school biology teacher in the US. It was a very difficult decision for me to make, because this region has been home to me for four years, but I am looking forward to working with students and children again, to working with my own Ecology Clubs, and to organizing other environmental education activities in New Mexico. I am excited about the potential of working together with some of you after my time with ISAR. I will never lose my connection to this region and plan on continuing to work in collaboration with you! Please feel free to contact me through our office. Gulnara will forward all mail to me. Related to my departure, I want to give a warm welcome to the new ISAR Regional Director, Ross Maclaren. He will begin work with ISAR in mid June, at which point he will write to introduce himself. For now, I will simply say that he is a great addition to the ISAR team and I think all of you will greatly enjoy working with him. I wish you all the best! Sincerely, Jennifer Gable 2. ISAR Seminar "Development of Principles for Interaction between Nongovernmental Organizations and Transnational Corporations" A three-day seminar, "Developing Principles for Interaction between NGOs and Transnational Corporations," will be held in Almaty, Kazakhstan in September 2000. The seminar will be the second in a four-part series in ISAR's Caspian program, which brings together environmental NGOs from Azerbaijan, Georgia, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkmenistan. The program is funded by the United States Agency for International Development and the United Nations Development Programme. The seminar on transnational corporations (TNCs) is jointly organized by ISAR and Green Salvation, an environmental NGO based in Almaty. This four-part seminar series addresses environmental problems shared by citizens of all the Caspian Basin countries, providing expert analysis on the environmental challenges of the region and an opportunity for hands-on involvement in the development and implementation of Basin- wide NGO cooperation on issues of importance to the environment and the communities of the region. The seminars focus on the following topics: 1) public environmental monitoring in the Caspian Basin (held in Baku, Azerbaijan in March 2000), 2) developing principles for interaction between NGOs and transnational corporations, 3) alternative paths of development for the Caspian region, and 4) the legal status of the Caspian Sea. NGO representatives from each country will be selected through a competitive application process to participate in each seminar; each seminar will have different application criteria and a separate application review. The goal of the TNC seminar is two-fold: 1) to provide NGOs with an opportunity to share experience and knowledge about effective collaboration among NGOs in regions where the activities of TNCs have a significant influence on the environment, 2) to provide NGOs with the information, tools and opportunity to enable them develop their own strategy for interacting with TNCs in the Caspian Basin. The seminar will focus on three areas: information exchange, legal questions, and direct action. NGO representatives from FSU and US NGOs with experience working with TNCs will present case studies and discuss their experiences-positive and negative-with seminar participants. The seminar will also examine positive and negative activities of TNCs in relation to the environment and civil society, and the possibility of using TNCs in environmental protection activities. NGO representatives interested in participating in the seminar should fill out the application below. All applicants must be a member of an NGO or initiative group working on environmental issues related to the Caspian Basin, and must have experience and/or interest in developing and participating in a Caspian-wide NGO strategy for working with TNCs. Successful applicants will be actively involved in environmental NGO work in the Caspian Basin, be interested in developing a cooperative strategy with activists around the Basin, and will demonstrate an understanding of the priorities for international NGO cooperation in the Caspian Basin. Successful applicants will also concur with ISAR's goals of improving the environment of the Caspian, promoting international understanding and seeking peaceful resolution of international issues relevant to the region. ISAR has funding to accept 5 activists from each of the countries listed above. Applications will be read by a review panel and the participants will be selected based on their applications. INCOMPLETE APPLICATIONS WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. Please send your application to ISAR-Almaty by May 19, 2000. All applicants will be notified as to whether they have been selected to participate by May 30, 2000. ISAR-Almaty e-mail: Almaty, Kazakhstan, fax: 3272-67-71-88. (SERGEY: English language applications (i.e. Iranian participants) will submit their applications to ISAR-DC.) Thank you for your interest in ISAR's program, and good luck! Sincerely, ISAR's Caspian Program Organizational Committee Application: Name (first name, surname): Title: Organization: Address: Phone: Fax: E-Mail: Please indicate which is the most reliable form of communication to reach you: Phone_________ Fax_________ E-mail___________________ Do you have regular access to e-mail?___________________ 1. Please describe the mission of your NGO. 2. Please describe the objectives of your organization, focusing on specific environmental projects you have undertaken. 3. Is your NGO registered? When was the group founded? How many members do you have? 4. Please describe your personal responsibilities within your NGO. How long have you been working with it? 5. Has your NGO worked collaboratively with other NGOs? Please describe any cooperative activity or project in which your NGO has been involved. 6. Have you worked on international environmental projects in the past? Please elaborate. 7. Please describe specific Caspian-related projects your organization has undertaken. 8. Please describe your reasons for wanting to attend this seminar. 9. Do you or does your organization have experience working with transnational corporations? If so, please describe. 10. If you were to attend the TNC Seminar, what contributions would you be prepared to make to the overall agenda? 11. Please describe ways that you would disseminate information about the TNC Seminar to other NGOs and individuals with whom you work. 12. Please describe ways you and your organization would be prepared to work with other NGOs following the TNC seminar to ensure the development of an NGO strategy for working with TNCs in the Caspian Basin. 13. How did you find out about ISAR's Caspian program? (We are very interested in learning which channels are most effective in spreading the word about our program. This information will help us in improving our outreach.) 14. May ISAR distribute your organization's contact information to those interested in the work of Caspian NGOs? Yes___________ No_______________ 15. Signature (or name, if by e-mail)__________________________ Date____________________________ 3. ISAR's "Periferia" Small Grants Program for NGOs in Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan At the beginning of 2000, the international organization ISAR-Central Asia began a new two-year program to support nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and initiative groups in Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The program particularly targets organizations in more remote areas of the countries, and therefore NGOs from Almaty, Ashgabad and Tashkent are ineligible to receive grants through this program. The Periferia program aims to broaden and strengthen the NGO movement in the republics of Central Asia through empowering NGOs working on questions of environmental protection and the connection between environmental conditions and human health and also to assist NGOs in becoming more active players in building civil society in Central Asia. The Periferia program is financed by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Grants of up to $3000 will be made to NGOs for carrying out projects to improve the environmental situation in the region, reduce negative impacts on the environment, and to encourage citizens to become involved in protecting the environment and human health and in the development of a nongovernmental movement in the countries of Central Asia. In the first year of the program there will be three grant rounds. Projects eligible for funding under this program may address various aspects of environmental protection, and should be oriented toward: ? Encouraging public participation in addressing environmental and health problems. ? Increasing the role of local communities in the making of decisions that concern the environment and human health. ? Strengthening nongovernmental organizations, particularly in the more remote regions of Central Asia. Examples of types of projects that will fit these criteria include: ? Projects which involve local populations in concrete actions to improve their environment ? Projects to increase the role of NGOs in environmental decision making ? Projects to educate the public about the environmental situation in their region and possible ways to address environmental problems ? Projects to decrease negative impacts on the environment and human health ? Environmental education programs for schoolchildren and university students The Periferia program will not support: ? Seminars, conferences, trainings, demonstrations, etc. ? Purely scientific or commercial projects ? Purely publishing projects, which have as their goal only the production of a publication ? Research and writing of manuscripts for books or manuals. Grant applications will be reviewed by an independent expert board that includes two NGO representatives from each of the three countries involved in the program. The board members are leaders in their organizations and in the environmental movement. The deadline for receipt of proposals to be considered in the next round of grants is July 31, 2000. For more information, please contact: ISAR-Central Asia 128 Shagabutdinova St., Apt. 7 Almaty, Kazakhstan 480012 phone/fax: 3272-67-71-88 e-mail: root@isar.almaty.kz 4. Announcement of a seminar in Prague for NGOs working on World Bank and IMF issues. Prague 2000 Activities on the World Bank A group of non-governmental organisations (CEE Bankwatch Network, Jubilee 2000 and Friends of the Earth) are preparing a series of public awareness activities connected with the World Bank Annual General Meeting, to be held in Prague in September 2000. Among the planned activities are a skillsharing/strategy session for NGOs working on the World Bank and the IMF. This session will be held 20-22 September 2000. Its main goal is to have NGOs from the West, Central and Eastern Europe, and the South meet and share their experiences with WB/IMF projects that have had socially, economically, and environmentally negative impacts. We would like to discuss strategies for work on these projects and advocacy. The session will be in English with Russian translation. NGO participants attending the skillsharing/strategy session will automatically be registered for the WB/IMF AGM; they will be expected to participate in activities associated with the AGM -- meetings, advocacy, public discussions, etc. - which runs from 22 to 28 September 2000. Synopsis for September Activities 20-22 - Skillsharing/Strategy Session for NGOs 22-25 - Official WB/IMF Seminars 23-28 - NGO meetings with WB/IMF management and EDs at the AGM More information is available at: http://www.bankwatch.org/wb-prague 5. Announcement of the Seminar "Environment in the News" to take place in London. The Reuters Foundation (RF) is accepting applications for its June 12 through June 23 Environment in the News Workshop in London. The program will bring together about a dozen journalists from around the world for a two-week, practical program focusing upon the importance of environmental coverage. The course is part of a program run by RF instructors in centers throughout the world. Full-time journalists or regular contributors to newspapers, news agencies, magazines and radio or |