WECF, WECF Women in Europe for a Common Future “Effective Advocacy for Health in Europe” Riga Conference, Latvia 2003 WECF - International Network of Women for Health, Environment and Sustainable Development Annemarie Mohr Burkhard Eastern Europe Director, WECF

WECF, What is WECF ? An international network which brings together women's initiatives from different parts of Europe and the CIS in joint projects on sustainable development, poverty alleviation, environment, health, social justice and participatory democracy  WECF promotes participation of women in policy making at local, national and international level  WECF emphasizes the role of women in sustainable development and the importance of a gender approach

WECF, What does WECF do? Practical aid projects with partner organizations in Western and Eastern Europe (incl. CIS) Advocacy at local/regional, national, and international (European and UN) level Provision and exchange of information and expertise in the field of health, environment and sustainable development Practical project: working with children in the Aral Sea region

WECF, How are we organised WECF was founded after Rio 1992 Earth Summit WECF has 2 offices, in Netherlands and Germany WECF has 50 members in 20 countries in East and West WECF works in close cooperation on practical projects with many of its members, health, human rights and women’s organisations These projects are in field of Women’s health and environment, women and healthy food production, safe and sufficient drinking water, fight radiation and chemical pollution

WECF, How are we organised (2) WECF’s partners are based in Latvia, Bellarus, Poland, Greece, Tadjikistan, UK, Spain, Finland, Sweden, Netherlands, France, Ireland, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Romania, Russia, Uzbekistan, Armenia, Kazakhstan…

WECF, Clean Drinking Water Campaign Ukraine (1) partnership project of WECF and MAMA-86, based in Kiev, Ukraine and 5 local grass-roots organisations Partner since 1996, started with women-health-environment project Based on work with 12 local groups: drinking water selected as focus Define problem Survey on drinking water contamination, 1600 people Water tests show contamination Discuss results with experts, local authorities, water companies Lobby improvement on the selected issue

WECF, Clean Drinking Water Campaign Ukraine (2) Local projects in 12 cities under one umbrella project Strategy: analysis of problems  awareness raising  public hearings - media campaign  lobby - pilot project Sevastopol, Mariupol: water treatment unit for infectious diseases hospital and children’s sanatorium Yaremche: polluted water in wells  awareness raising  well desinfection Poltava: high nitrate contamination  awareness raising  short term and long term solutions Kiev, Odessa: waste of water  water meter installation in apartment buildings  education  saving water

WECF, Effective strategies and ways for action for women to use for sustainable development Discussion with women on local situation:  Main concerns of local population  Define Sustainable Development locally  Long term goals - Short term steps  Motivate local society to take action  Support local activity  Bring it to regional, national, international level

WECF, Methods for enhancing grass root involvement  Focus on one or two central issues  Select issues that are priority concerns for women in the region  Capacity Building of the group on this issue  Local priority: within the framework of a project each group selects its own priority

WECF, Local action for enhancing grass root involvement  Establishing action plan on selected priority  Empower local community by education  Awareness raising and detailed information on the selected priority  Actual situation of the priority issues also in other places, countries: regional, national, international conventions, treaties existing  Legal basis local, national, international - what are the rights and possibilities of the civil society  Capacity Building, join forces

WECF, Sustainable Chimbay -Healthy food for the children of the Aral Sea (1) Aral Sea is dying - ecological disaster area Desertification - salinization - pollution - poverty Crisis affects health of mothers & children Pilot project at Kindergarden: fruit & vegetables gardens Improved diet, income and health Has resulted in family gardens in 6 villages Empowerment of women for other activities for LA- 21 (energy, water, organic farming)

WECF, Sustainable Chimbay -Healthy food for the children of the Aral Sea (2) On 10 hectares women grow organic fruit & vegetables to improve their children’s health % of the harvest used to feed the children in the local kindergarten, other % for income WECF supported local NGO ‘Center-Perzent’ to develop this project with funding of EU TACIS WECF’s expertise on this area used

WECF, WECF’s strategy Women should choose what is important in their communities, where they can reach results Our strengths: giving LOCAL projects a voice at the international level But only effective if we cooperate at regional, national and international level Grass-root work and empowerment is the basis, but join forces for effective lobbying Example: European Women’s Conference in preparation of WSSD, March 02 Prague: worked together on 8 themes, local groups, under umbrella of Sustainable Development