http://information-habitat.net/docs/uscnu.htm



U.S. Citizens' Network
on the
United Nations Conference on Environment and Development




Table of Contents


    OVERVIEW
      Problem
      Why funding for this project is needed
      Background of the Citizens' Network on UNCED
      Goals

    CLEARINGHOUSE & COMMUNICATIONS
      Objectives
      Overview
        Information needs
        Interface with participating organizations
        Information and communications technology
      Information strategy
        Gathering information
        Organizing information
        Disseminating information
        Integrating electronic and print media
        UNCED Information System
        International coordination
        Information advisory group
      Clearinghouse
        Documents
        Monthly Bulletin
        Directories
        Information sources
      Computer communications
        Electronic networks and UNCED
        UNCED electronic conferences
        Citizens' Network electronic conferences
        Desk top publishing on-line

    OUTREACH
      Objective
      Developing broad-based participation
      Outreach resources
        Citizen's Action Guide
        Brochure and resource packets
      Local and regional conferences
        Steering Committee meeting locations
        Calendar of events

    ISSUE PAPERS & POLICY DEVELOPMENT
      Objective
      Working Groups
        Relation to the Network
        UNCED agenda issues
        Other environment and development issues
        Structure of Working Groups
        Working Group directories
        Support for Working Groups

    POLICY INPUT
      Objective
        Facilitating role
      Participation in UNCED process
        Preparation for NGO participation
        Presence at PrepComs
        PrepCom information and communication service
      Input into U.S. policy
        U.S. National Report
        Public hearings
        Electronic access to National Report proceedings
        Washington briefings
        U.S. delegation to UNCED

    INTERNATIONAL NGO COORDINATION
      Objective
      International Facilitating Committee
      Linkages with NGOs from developing countries



U.S. Citizens' Network
on the
United Nations Conference on Environment and Development



OVERVIEW
The U.S. Citizens' Network on UNCED has been created to facilitate the efforts of U.S. organizations in affecting the issues of the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED). Through this project, the Citizens' Network will support the establishment of mechanisms that enable a continued broad-based mobilization of active involvement and effective participation in the UNCED process.

The Citizens' Network on UNCED is a sponsored project of the Tides Foundation. This proposal is for first year funding of the Network's activities to be renewed for a second year that will include a follow up period after the June 1992 conference.

Problem
UNCED represents an unprecedented opportunity to address the challenges of living sustainably on the earth. The scope of its agenda touches on a broad range of environment and development issues, most of which are inter-related.

Actions and policies within the U.S. will have a major impact on the success of UNCED, and on the ability to meet the challenges of environment and development.

The issues being addressed by UNCED cut across the programs and activities of numerous U.S. organizations, but to date many of these organizations have not adequately examined their activities in the light of international environment and development issues.

Why funding for this project is needed
The timing of UNCED, and the schedule of Preparatory Committee meetings make it essential for the coordinating and organizing effort to move forward in as timely manner as possible. Many key decisions about the UNCED agenda are expected to be made at the UNCED Preparatory Committee (PrepCom) meeting to be held in Geneva in March and April 1991, and the U.S. National Report for UNCED is scheduled for completion in July 1991. Prompt action is necessary if U.S. organizations are to have a significant impact on the Conference and to generate input into the preparation of the National Report.

Background of the Citizens' Network on UNCED
The Citizens' Network has grown out of a series of frequent meetings of non-government organizations beginning at the initial Preparatory Committee organizational meeting for UNCED in New York in March 1990. These meetings led to the October 21-22 Citizens' Consultation on UNCED -- attended by 225 participants from 166 organizations -- at which the establishment of the Citizens' Network of UNCED was formally approved.

The organizing activities leading to the establishment of the Citizens' Network have already contributed to a substantially increased awareness of UNCED, its agenda and timetable, and the opportunities the UNCED process offers for education and for informed, effective citizen action. Through this process, the Citizens' Network has established a clear need for a focal point for information within the U.S concerning UNCED and for fostering dialogue and cooperative activities pertaining to UNCED.

In its development to date, the Citizens' Network has been built on substantial in-kind efforts of participating organizations and individuals. The extent of in-kind contributions to the Citizens' Network continues to grow -- along with the development and initial implementation of plans for direct involvement in UNCED-related activities -- as the number of organizations and individuals interested in UNCED continues to expand.

The in-kind support of participants in the Citizens' Network will continue to be central to the success of the Citizens' Network. Indeed, the true measure of success of this project will not be assessed in terms of the activities of the secretariat of the Citizens' Network on UNCED, but in terms of the activities and accomplishments of the organizations and individuals who are participating in the Citizens' Network.

The level of active interest in UNCED and the rapidly increasing pace and complexity of the UNCED agenda has reached the point, however, that an infusion of funds is essential if the Citizens' Network is to maintain and enhance its facilitation role and support for an ever-increasing contribution of the U.S. NGO community to the success of the UNCED process.

Goals
The goals of the Citizens' Network on UNCED are to:
  • Establish mechanisms that facilitate effective, broad-based, cooperative participation by U.S. organizations and individual citizens in the UNCED process and in the development of U.S. policy on UNCED.

In order to accomplish this, the Citizens' Network will:

  • Establish a clearinghouse for information and communication on UNCED and UNCED-related environment and development issues, and on pertinent activities and programs of organizations;

  • Involve a broad range of U.S. organizations in addressing environment and development issues and in participating effectively in UNCED-related activities;

  • Support the development of issue papers and policy options on the issues of the UNCED agenda, for adoption and endorsement by members of the network;

  • Facilitate direct input into the UNCED preparatory process, and into the development of U.S. policy and legislation, and into the preparation of a U.S. National Report;

  • Foster networking of the activities of U.S. based organizations and coordination with parallel activities of non-government organizations and others around the world.
The primary means by which the Citizens' Network on UNCED will accomplish its goals is through the development of mechanisms that support the active and effective involvement in the UNCED process of organizations and individuals within the U.S.

An integral part of this process will involve fostering dialogue, information-sharing and cooperative action among organizations and individuals with an active interest in UNCED.


CLEARINGHOUSE & COMMUNICATIONS

Objectives
Establish a clearinghouse for information and communication on UNCED and UNCED-related environment and development issues, and on pertinent activities and programs of organizations, and provide information support services to the participating organizations of the Citizens' Network.

Overview
The establishment of a clearinghouse for gathering UNCED-related information, the development of a framework for organizing the information, the creation of timely, versatile and cost-effective means of disseminating the information, and the facilitation of effective communication within the network will be a central component of the activities of the Citizens' Network. The clearinghouse activity will be of value to all U.S. organizations involved in UNCED, and is not being performed by any other organization.

Information needs
There is a broad range of needs for information relating to UNCED and to environment and development, ranging from overview materials to specialized in-depth reports; from a schedule of events to identification of key people and organizations in each of a variety of substantive areas.

Each of the participating organizations and individuals in the Citizens' Network will share a need for information that is from a wide variety of sources, that is well organized, and that is readily available, in order to avoid the dual problems of information overload and inability to know about and access vital information. Timely access to the information will be invaluable, as will be timely means of disseminating it.

Interface with participating organizations
The clearinghouse will not attempt to respond directly to all requests for information concerning UNCED, and to face the prospect of having its limited resources overwhelmed. Instead, attention will be focussed on empowering the participating organizations to develop a greater degree of self sufficiency in gaining access to UNCED information.

This will be accomplished by organizing the UNCED information, making it available in a readily accessible format through the creation of directories and bibliographies, and providing support to organizations to gain direct access to documents through electronic networks. However, for organizations that have not established access to electronic networks, and for documents that it has not been practical to store in electronic format, the clearinghouse will provide a document distribution service.

Information and communications technology
The use of information and communications technology plays a pivotal role in the clearinghouse and communications process for the Citizens' Network. These technologies offer immediate opportunities to make a quantum leap in overcoming conventional limitations of time in communication, effective access to information and in participatory decision making. Given the limited time between now and June 1992, and the perceived time constraints in the "race to save the planet", the advantages that electronic technology offers in making the most effective use of time will be invaluable.

Information strategy
Central to the information strategy of the Citizens' Network is the design and implementation of processes that make optimal use of computer and communications resources and that integrate these resources with networks of people and organizations, and with the use of print media. The quantity of information, and its diversity, call for systematic efforts to gather the information, organize it, and disseminate it. The information strategy has been in a process of formal development since the initial organizing meeting of the Preparatory Committee in New York in March 1990, and the efficacy of the strategy is becoming increasingly evident.

Gathering information
The project will compile a broad range of UNCED-related information, including: official documents -- governmental and intergovernmental -- concerning UNCED; reports, papers and articles concerning the UNCED process and issues related to UNCED; UNCED-related legislation in the U.S.; and information on parallel intergovernmental proceedings, on events and conferences related to UNCED, and on organizations and individuals actively involved in UNCED issues.

Organizing information
To the extent that it is practical, information will be stored and organized electronically. A text scanner will be used to convert UNCED-related documents into electronic format, which will allow then to be stored in full-text databases and to be made available on-line.

A relational database has been developed and maintained to collect information on people, organizations and projects related to UNCED. The database provides very flexible cross-referencing of information, indexing by interest, expertise, and committee or working group membership. Other databases have been designed to maintain calendar information, and to store UNCED-related documents in an indexed, cross-referenced and searchable format.

Disseminating information
To the extent that is possible, the Citizens' Network will make use of a decentralized approach to disseminating information. This approach is guided both by an intention to support and empower the member organizations of the Network and to avoid creating a large centralized office for the Citizens' Network, and by considerations of effectiveness in making optimal use of existing channels for disseminating information.

Integrating electronic and print media
While the power of electronic communications is gaining increasing recognition, there remain a number of critical challenges to making it truly effective as a vehicle for communication. There are still relatively few people who have direct access to electronic networks, and the printed word will continue to serve as the primary medium for direct access to information. Thus an important challenge is to simplify a two-way translation process between electronic and print media.

UNCED Information System
The Information System that is being developed by the UNCED Secretariat will play a critical role in the overall organization of the 1992 conference, and especially in the development of Agenda 21 -- the intergovernmental action agenda that is one of the principal intended outcomes of UNCED. The preliminary design for the UNCED Information System points to the power it will offer in gaining an overview of the environmental issues, and the ways in which they intersect with the cross cutting development issues, the institutional, legal and financial implications, and with adaptation strategies such as family planning and improving energy efficiency.

A key feature of the UNCED Information System will be in helping to balance the consideration of development and environment concerns, and to explore the impact across the range of development and environment issues of strategies such as the adoption of energy efficiency measures, or of changes in patterns of consumption and diet, or in agricultural practices. Without such an information system, it would be very difficult to conduct such analyses and present them within the framework of the UNCED agenda.

International coordination
An important feature of electronic networks such as the Association for Progressive Communications or the Telecommunications Cooperative Network is that access to the information posted there is not limited geographically. And most of the UNCED-related information will be of value to NGOs from other countries.

Information advisory group
The Citizens' Network has been engaged in dialogue with key people and organizations -- within the U.S. and internationally -- involved in developing information strategy for the overall UNCED process. Through this process, the Citizens' Network, an informal group of information and communication experts has been assembled. These experts have been playing a invaluable advisory role in the development and implementation of the clearinghouse and communications strategy, and are informed of plans and developments for the clearinghouse and communications process.

Clearinghouse
Electronic conferencing and electronic mail; news service, via fax, to environment and development organizations, publications and news services, and to the general media; and referral to sources of detailed information/expertise. To the extent feasible, information will be made available through electronic and print media.

Documents
A primary function of the clearinghouse will be to create effective access to documents. This will involve the establishment of a document library, the development and maintenance of a bibliography, and timely, cost-effective processes for distributing the documents. Participating organizations in the Citizens' Network will be encouraged to maintain document libraries that are accessible to people and organizations in the immediate area.

Monthly Bulletin
The Citizens' Network will publish a monthly bulletin for participants in the Citizens' Network. The bulletin will include concise reports and updates of key issues and projects, and a calendar of events pertaining to UNCED. Contact people and organizations will be identified so that there can in depth information can be obtained on the issues, projects and events included in the bulletin.

Directories
The network will publish directories with full addresses -- including phone, fax and electronic mail address -- of the organizations and individuals involved in the network, along with other pertinent people and agencies. The directories will also include membership of the committees and working groups of the Citizens' Network, and will be indexed on the basis of key words identifying specific interests and expertise.

Information sources
The quantity of available information on environment and development is too vast for the Citizens' Network to attempt to collect it all in its clearinghouse. However, the Citizens' Network will support access to the fuller body of information by compiling a directory of information sources and clearinghouses on environment and development information, and by establishing cooperative relationship with such information sources.

Computer communications
The Citizens' Network will provide support to participating organizations in the effective use of computer communications. Indeed, it is likely that a qualitative shift towards effective use of electronic conferencing by non-government organization in the U.S. will be one of the major lasting contributions of this project. In this task, the network has enjoyed the full support and cooperation of the EcoNet division of the Institute for Global Communications.

Electronic networks and UNCED
Electronic conferencing has already played a vital role in the UNCED process, and its importance will become increasingly evident as the process moves forward. The clearinghouse director has played a lead role in the formulation and implementation of the use of electronic conferencing for UNCED. An indication of the significance attached by the UNCED Secretariat to the role of computer communications was the Earth Day 1990 press conference at which Maurice Strong, Secretary General of UNCED announced the establishment of a Global Electronic Network -- initially on the networks of the Association for Progressive Communications and the Telecommunications Cooperative Network.

The value of the electronic network was evident during the Nairobi PrepCom in September 1990, when it was the primary source of timely reports from Nairobi to the NGO community. A concise guide to computer communications for UNCED -- co-produced by the clearinghouse director -- was widely disseminated at the Nairobi PrepCom, and has been distributed widely since then.

UNCED electronic conferences
An initial set of electronic conferences were established on the networks of the Association for Progressive Communications in July, 1990, with the creation of two primary conferences: a "read-only" conference for official documents of the UN and of the UNCED Secretariat, and a second conference open for public participation. In order to accommodate information and communication needs and patterns of use, three additional public participation conferences have recently been created. One of these is focused on information strategy, one will primarily be used for posting newsletters and calendars of events, and the third will be a structured conference in which information will be organized within the framework of the UNCED agenda. The creation of the new conferences will leave the original public participation conference as a relatively unstructured conference for free ranging discussion, exchange of ideas, and questions

Citizens' Network electronic conferences
In order to facilitate timely and cost effective communication among the Steering Committee of the Citizens' Network, a dedicated electronic conference has been established for the use of the Steering Committee. Two of the Citizens' Network's Working Groups have also established electronic conferences as a forum for their groups plans and activities.

Desk top publishing on-line
In an initiative that has accomplished immediate results in simplifying the transition between electronic and print media, and will be a very powerful communication tool of the Citizens' Network, publications will be made available on-line in a desk top publishing format as binary files, in addition to being disseminated in print and in on-line text files -- the traditional format for electronic communication.

The initial example of this approach demonstrates the power of this methodology: the December 1990 issue of Network '92, a newsletter produced by the Centre for Our Common Future in Geneva, was posted through GreenNet as a text file onto an electronic conference on Friday December 14. Later that night, it was downloaded from EcoNet in Baltimore, Maryland, and was typeset using a widely available leading word processing program. It was then re-posted onto EcoNet as a word processing file -- in a format that can be used either by IBM or Macintosh computers. Within hours after it was posted, the binary file was downloaded and printed in Eugene, Oregon, by a member of the Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide, from where it has been mailed to a network with members in Malaysia, Sri Lanka, Ecuador, Peru, the Soviet Union, Australia, Indonesia, Philippines, Canada and the U.S.

OUTREACH

Objective
The Citizens' Network will involve a broad range of U.S. organizations in addressing environment and development issues and in participating in UNCED related activities.

Developing broad-based participation
The level of participation from a broad range of organizations in the October Citizens' Consultation, and subsequent expression of enthusiasm for further involvement are evidence of the breadth and depth of interest in UNCED and related issues.

The Citizens' Network will be strengthening the outreach effort to organizations that already have expertise in the substantive issues of the UNCED agenda, as well as to organizations that have not previously considered their objectives and program priorities in the context of the domestic and international relationships between environment and development issues.

The outreach activities will also build on the major renewal of active environmental concern that accompanied Earth Day 1990, and will offer an ongoing focus for interest that was mobilized around Earth Day.

Outreach resources
In order to facilitate outreach efforts, the Citizens' Network will compile and develop resources for use by affiliated organizations to broaden awareness of the 1992 Conference.

Citizen's Action Guide
A concise "Citizen's Action Guide to the 1992 United Nations Conference on Environment and Development" will be developed. The Citizen's Guide will provide background information on the issues of the conference agenda and on the UNCED process, including a concise overview of the United Nations system and process, and of the relationship of the UNCED agenda to parallel intergovernmental processes.

The Guide will present an overview of action opportunities, ranging from consumer choices and recycling to actions such as convening informal meetings; raising environment and development for consideration on the agendas of organizations; organizing town meetings; developing local or regional support networks; supporting appropriate local, state and federal legislation; providing input into the preparation of the U.S. National Report and the development of national policy; and involvement in activities at the level of the United Nations. The Citizen's Guide will also include a glossary of terms and acronyms associated with the UNCED process.

Brochure and resource packets
A brochure will be prepared for mailings and for distribution at conferences; resource packets will be compiled for use at informal, in-home meetings, for presentation at organization meetings, and for organizing town meetings or regional gatherings. In order to facilitate widespread distribution of the materials, they will be prepared in a format that encourages photocopying or other forms of reproduction by affiliated organizations. The Citizen's Guide, and to the extent feasible, the information in the resource packets, will be made available on-line through EcoNet.

Local and regional conferences
An element of the outreach proposal will to encourage local groups to organize regional, state and community conferences and public hearings on UNCED issues. The Citizens' Network will provide technical assistance, aid in securing speakers, travel assistance to participants from low-income and minority constituencies, and catalytic mini-grants for basic operating costs.

Steering Committee meeting locations
In order to support the efforts for broad geographical representation in the network, the bi-monthly Steering Committee meetings will be held in different regions of the U.S. The Citizens' Network will work with local and regional groups so that the Steering Committee meetings can be held in conjunction with regional hearings on UNCED.

Calendar of events
The Citizens' Network will encourage the active involvement of network participants in conferences, meetings, and regional public hearings on issues that directly or indirectly pertain to the UNCED agenda. A calendar of these events will be compiled updated, and disseminated, and to the extent that it is practical, calendar information will be exchanged with other existing organizations and networks that are compiling related calendars.

ISSUE PAPERS & POLICY DEVELOPMENT

Objective
The Citizens' Network will support the development of issue papers and policy options on the issues of the UNCED agenda for adoption and endorsement by members of the network.

Working Groups
The preparation of issue papers and policy options and recommendations will be a critical vehicle for providing input into U.S. policy and into the UNCED Preparatory process. Most of this work will be done by Network members. Working Group will be established to facilitate the dissemination, discussion and development of issue and policy papers on each of the substantive issues.

Relation to the Network
The Working Groups will function as autonomous groups, but will disseminate information through the Citizens' Network via the clearinghouse function and the monthly bulletin. Network members seeking detailed information on a specific issue, or seeking to play an active role on that issue, would be referred to the convener(s) of the appropriate Working Group.

UNCED agenda issues
The Citizens' Network will set up Working Groups to correspond with the UNCED agenda items. Some of the Working Groups may be set up around a narrower focus than the UNCED Working Parties, especially where there is an existing network already in place that is willing to cooperate with the Citizens' Network.

Other environment and development issues
Working Groups are also being established to work on specific issues that may not have a clearly defined place on the UNCED agenda, for example, population, women's issues, sustainable agriculture, or ethics.

Structure of Working Groups
Each Working Group will be free to develop its own structure and modus operandi for meetings, communications, and decision making. In general, however, it is expected that each Working Group will have an active core group, members who will serve in an advisory or resource capacity, and a broader group with a specific interest in keeping informed of the details of the Working Group's deliberations and actions, and in providing advocacy support of policies recommended by the Working Group.

Working Group directories
Through the maintenance in the clearinghouse database records of the Working Group affiliations of the organizations and individuals associated with the Citizens' Network, directories of the membership of each Working Group will be readily updated on a frequent basis. The directories will facilitate dialogue among members with common interests, and the communication of pertinent information to network participants according to their expression of interest.

Support for Working Groups
Help will be provided to Working Groups in setting up and facilitating on-line electronic conferences. Where needed, support will be offered to Working Groups in the form of mini-grants to facilitate broad-based participation. In order to provide the mini-grants, and for initial resources to get the Working Groups off the ground, the network is budgeting $10,000 as seed money for the Working Groups. Most of the funding for Working Group action will be from members of the Citizens' Network.

POLICY INPUT

Objective
The Citizens' Network will encourage input of U.S. non-government organizations into the UNCED process and into the development of U.S. policy related to UNCED.

Facilitating role
The Citizens' Network will not engage directly in input to U.S. policy, but will facilitate input from its member organizations through such events as roundtables, briefings with the U.S. decision makers, and regional and national gatherings.

Participation in UNCED process
The decision of the UNCED PrepCom in Nairobi to allow the participation of NGOs -- including those not in consultative status with the UN -- in the preparatory process creates an important opportunity for U.S. organizations to contribute to the UNCED process. The procedures established at the Nairobi PrepCom meeting have now been endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly for the remaining UNCED PrepCom meetings.

Preparation for NGO participation
The General Assembly decision on NGO participation confirms the availability of a very important opportunity for NGOs to contribute to the UNCED process. In order to strengthen the ability of NGOs to take advantage of this opportunity, the Citizens' Network will organize workshops and resource materials that provide guidance and preparation for effective participation in UN processes.

Presence at PrepComs
The project provides for funding for a member of the Citizens' Network to participate in the UNCED Preparatory Committee meetings. The Citizens' Network member will be able to take resource materials compiled by the issue Working Groups, and/or prepared by member organizations, for dissemination at the PrepCom.

PrepCom information and communication service
In conjunction with the UNCED Secretariat, international organizations facilitating NGO participation in the UNCED process, the Association for Progressive Communications, and the Telecommunications Cooperative Network, the Citizens' Network will participate in setting up an information and communication service during each of the remaining PrepCom meetings.

Through the use of electronic mail, the Citizens' Network member will send timely reports from the PrepCom for distribution within the network, and will also be able to forward requests for supplementary information and materials, to be sent via electronic mail for distribution at the PrepCom. This process will thus effectively increase the number of U.S. organizations who are able to contribute to the formal preparatory process.

Input into U.S. policy
The Citizens' Network will facilitate the development of opportunities for U.S. organizations to provide broad-based input into the development of U.S. policy pertaining to UNCED, and into the preparation of a U.S. National Report.

U.S. National Report
The Citizens' Network will be developing mechanisms to facilitate broad-based input into the National Report process. The tentative plans that the President's Council on Environmental Quality (CEQ) has prepared for the National Report Process call for a very limited number of roundtable discussions, with only fifteen to twenty participants included in each roundtable. Each roundtable will attempt to address as many as five major substantive areas.

Public hearings
Participating organizations of the Citizens' Network are planning to organize public hearings that would present input into the national report and alternative national reports. In addition, participants in the network will be working with Members of Congress and their staff in support of Congressional hearings that would also broaden public participation in preparation for the National Report and the formulation of U.S. policy related to UNCED issues.

Electronic access to National Report proceedings
In response to a recommendation from the Citizens' Network, CEQ expects to make the proceedings of the roundtable available on-line via EcoNet. The electronic conferences would be set up with the successive drafts of the official National Report in a read-only conference, with a parallel conference that would contain the text of submissions to the National Report, and any comments or discussion posted directly to the electronic conference.

Washington briefings
Participating organizations of the Citizens' Network will hold briefings on the UNCED process and on specific UNCED-related issues in Washington, DC, geared towards key Congressional, administration and non-governmental representatives. Briefings would be held before and after each session of the UNCED PrepCom, and on the major issues of the UNCED agenda.

U.S. delegation to UNCED
Dialogue between representatives of non-government organizations and members of the U.S. government delegation to UNCED will continue to be supported by the Citizens' Network, through convening meetings with the whole delegation, and through support of informal dialogue between network members and individual members of the U.S. Delegation. The Citizens' Network will support the inclusion of representatives of non-government organizations as members of the U.S. delegation.

INTERNATIONAL NGO COORDINATION

Objective
The Citizens' Network will foster coordination of the activities of U.S. based organizations with parallel activities of non-government organizations around the world.

International Facilitating Committee
There is a great opportunity for U.S. organizations to contribute to the UNCED process through working cooperatively with non-government organizations from other countries, especially in developing nations. Through the International Facilitating Committee -- on which the Citizens' Network is represented -- and other international and national coordinating bodies, the Citizens' Network will cooperate in preparing for NGO activities that are being planned to be held simultaneously with the official UNCED program.

Linkages with NGOs from developing countries
The Citizens' Network will also facilitate the establishment of linkages between NGOs in developing countries and U.S. NGOs with needed resources and expertise. Dialogue is already in process with representatives of Brazilian NGOs, and the network will be exploring cooperation with the Canadian Interagency Task Force on UNCED in their efforts to develop means of providing technical assistance to NGOs from developing countries.

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Web page updated: 2002.04.13