Session 3: Ensuring Effective Stakeholder Participation:

1. Thematic Workshop on Governance, Civil Society Participation and Strengthening Partnership for Chemical and Waste Management and SAICM Implementation Geneva , June 19-21, 2006 Session 3: Ensuring Effective Stakeholder Participation: The Perspective of Industry and Public Interest and Labour Organizations Panel 2: Perspectives of Public Interest and Labour Organizations

2. Ensuring Effective Stakeholder Participation:The Perspective of Public Interest Organization Lilian Corra, MD • International Society of Doctors for the Environment, ISDE www.isde.org Consultive Status WHO • Asociación Argentina de Médicos por el Medio Ambiente, AAMMA www.aamma.org • NGO: Health Sector Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

3. International Society of Doctors for the Environment, ISDE • Health effects of environmental changes • Professional organization (MDs and professionals with interest in environmental health) • ID problems and promote solutions by acting in prevention ISDE Strategy: “Action in Partnership” by building alliances Increase capacity to bring on others actors Replicability of the experiences Tools: • Education (means change of behavior) • Information • Develop and provide materials in local language • Advocacy (using epidemiological info as a tool) • Research with intervention in the community Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

4. SAICM implementation some thoughts “Make a wish” Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

5. SAICM implementation: some thoughts 1.- “Political decision is central” But for a real change the “wish for a change” is needed 2.- If there is not real demand there will be not achievements The problem can be ignored, solutions can be postponed ...but “e pur si muove” (Galileo) We need all partners and all strategies because Urgent action has to be taken Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

6. SAICM implementation: some thoughts 3.- If the demand is only information can be easily satisfied but may be “nothing will change” Education “changes behavior” 4.- ALL Stakeholders should become “actors” to modify the “nucleus” of the problem 5.-“Strength of the networks” is basic to achieve commitments Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

7. How important is national SAICM implementation from the perspective of stakeholder groups and why? • SAICM • At national level • Define national and regional policies on Chemical Safety • Define and identify roles and responsibilities • Should identify focal points in different areas to facilitate dialogue and actions • Not only “environment” is responsible: health, education, production, trade, industry and others have to identify “focal points” to be actively involved Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

8. How important is national SAICM implementation from the perspective of stakeholder groups and why? • SAICM • Promotes action in partnership • Under international framework • Organizes national and regional priorities under the GPA • Observatory (ID different activities/policies taking place) • Settles a timetable Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

9. How important is national SAICM implementation from the perspective of stakeholder groups and why? • Involvement of Multi-stakeholder • Reinforce • implementation and policies • assure continuity, follow up of the process • voluntary commitment • Helps to identify • existing resources • capacities and successful experiences • financial support Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

10. 2. What are lessons learned from past stakeholder involvement in chemicals and waste management that are relevant to SAICM? • In OUR experience • NGOs Partnership • “Catalyze processes” • Multiply efforts faster • Implement changes and interventions from different sectors (sometimes before polices are develop and implemented!) • Promote replication of successful experiences • Provide arenas to incentive dialogue among sectors • (sometimes dialogue among sectors is easier if take place in a neutral arena) Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

11. 2. What are lessons learned from past stakeholder involvement in chemicals and waste management that are relevant to SAICM? • At international level • NGOs • Keep the issue high in the governmental agendas • Promotion of Recommendations on Children Chemical Safety at IFCS IV • WHO Healthy Environment for Children Alliance • Participation in the Ministerial Process on Health and Environment in EU (London/Budapest) and the Americas (HEMA, Declaration including Chemical Safety and CEH) • Follow up and reinforce at national/regional level commitments taken by governments at international processes Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

12. “Mar del Plata Declaration of the Ministers of Health and Environment of the Americas” (HEMA Meeting - June 16th, 2005): “…We recognize that our countries are facing difficult and complex challenges related to the health and environmental areas. Our efforts, both at the regional and sub regional levels, will be aimed at supporting the progress and achievement of the results on the following three priority issues: • Integrated Management of Water Resources and Solid Waste; • Sound Management of Chemicals; • and Children’s Environmental Health … …We are committed to developing and implementing strategies to manage risks, reduce threats to ecosystems and to human health in our region from pesticides and other chemical pollutants, particularly with respect to vulnerable populations, including indigenous groups, industrial and agricultural workers, women and children. This will be done in order to comply with the obligations under the Stockholm, Rotterdam and Basel Conventions…” Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

13. “Recommendations to protect children from chemical hazards” IFCS Session IV, December, 2003. • “…Governments should promote education and training on children’s chemical safety… Governments and stakeholders should commit to sharing information on options for taking effective action to protect children from established chemical threats and from chemical risks where there is a degree of uncertainty…” Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

14. 2. What are lessons learned from past stakeholder involvement in chemicals and waste management that are relevant to SAICM? 3. NGOs ID and develop resources for education and information, by example • IFCS publication on “Resources for the Recommendations to protect children of the dangerous chemical exposure” • Materials and activities in cooperation with WHOorientated to call the attention, educate and inform, prevent chemical dangerous exposure and identify vulnerable populations (children and chronic low doses exposure) • Build profiles as a tool to build governmental strategies: • What is the information that health professionals have? • What are the more vulnerable and exposed populations? • What are the main national/regional sources of pollution? • ID and promote BAT BEP local expertsand successful experiences Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

15. 2. What are lessons learned from past stakeholder involvement in chemicals and waste management that are relevant to SAICM? 4. NGOs Attract and facilitate other partners to the process as: • MDs, family doctors, pediatrician • public health administrators • engineers • architects • lawyers • teachers • agro technical experts • judges • others Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

16. 3. What do stakeholders expect in terms of participation opportunities in the development of national SAICM implementation strategies and what barriers, if any, need to be overcome? We expect 1.- Participation according NGOs capacities and successful experiences (“know how”) on • Raise awareness • Build alliances and networks • Bring together grass roots and professional organizations • Advocacy: bring together different governmental sectors Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

17. 3. What do stakeholders expect in terms of participation opportunities in the development of national SAICM implementation strategies and what barriers, is any, need to be overcome? 2.- Participation opportunities • Interventions in the community • Fast involvement of other partners by creating and expanding the capacity to participate and implement actions Health NGOs easily develops partnership with other important sectors (that will become actors) because “common interest” As by example: • Worker’s Unions (by example agrarian workers union) • School teachers • Agro-technical schools • Layers and Judges • Public Health Administrators and other health professional orgs. • Universities, researchers Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

18. 3. What do stakeholders expect in terms of participation opportunities in the development of national SAICM implementation strategies and what barriers, is any, need to be overcome? 3.- Main roles to be played by NGOs: • Dissemination of the information • Education (specially professional education): “train master trainers” at different sectors (health, agriculture, teachers, media, others) • Building alliances • ID and promotion of successful experiences and technical capacities • Regional replication (BAT / BEP) by south-south cooperation • Preparing materials in local language, regional adapted and available Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

19. 3. What do stakeholders expect in terms of participation opportunities in the development of national SAICM implementation strategies and what barriers, is any, need to be overcome? Barriers: • Heath sector • Low involvement • Other sectors • More actors need to be identified: active actors are disperse • Low stimulation (isolation) of already involved sectors • Info/Education • Low involvement of Media and Educational Sector • Materials in local language scarce (by example in Spanish) • Lack of master trainers (an urgent modification of Curriculas at degree, post degree, technical schools and others is needed) • Lack of information (sometime disperse or/and unavailable) Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

20. 4.What are from the perspectives of stakeholders groups, major constraints, both in government and civil society, concerning the effective implementation of SAICM? Barriers: • BAT BEP • Successful experiences and expertise disperse (South) • Lack of profiles to drive effective polices, programs and actions • Partnership with Industry / Trading Sectors • Still week • Low involvement in the networks of production, industry and trading sectors, specially in the south (sometimes absent, low participation, showing double ethics and standards, only showing commercial interest) Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

21. 4.What are from the perspectives of stakeholders groups, major constraints, both in government and civil society, concerning the effective implementation of SAICM? • Government • Dispersion of the issue in different governmental sectors • Lack of involvement of production, industry, education and other central governmental sectors • On Strategies • Environment, chemical safety and health effects of environmental changes is not an strong issue • Horizontal approaches have to be develop • On Financial support • Lack of donors (few resources, few sources) • Very complex, difficult and slow processes Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE

22. NGO Guide for a successful partnership with the government • Informing without alarming (“governments get scare very easily”) • Use only scientific based info, always be credible and professional • Keep the topic high in the international agendas • Propose actions in agreement with commitments of the governments • Drive pilot projects at local scale bringing all the stakeholders together (show that things can be done) • Fundraise to cover the pilot project expenses • Engage other sectors (shared but differentiated responsibility) • Sustain on time multi sectorial and multi stakeholder participation (media, academia, medical associations, unions of workers, others) • Build strong alliances • ALWAYS. ALWAYS give ALL the credit to governments Dr. Lilian Corra AAMMA-ISDE