Civil Society Action Urged to Protect Environment

The Irish organisation established by health professionals to promote the environment has said civil society has to act en masse in order to make any progress in relation to saving the world from global warming.

Speaking at the Irish Doctors’ Environmental Association (IDEA) AGM recently, the Association’s International Advisor Feargal Duff noted that Acheim Steiner, the head of the former United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), has stated, “the UN is in a state of paralysis”.

“Civil society has to act en masse in order to have any progress,” Duff, who is an ex-UNEP executive, commented.

Governments sign up to all the environmental agreements but then refuse to act or indeed often block any action, he charged.

Duff, who is also husband of IDEA chairperson Juliet Duff, indicated that the Association, which is a registered charity, would approach the Carl Meyer Foundation for alternative funding.

According to Duff, he would speak to Willy Meyer of the Foundation regarding funding on July 16.

Duff, who said the thrust of all his work was to try to circumvent the stalemate caused by governments, also revealed he was in contact at a high level with international dairy food company Glanbia and would seek funding from them, but warned that that might bar the Association from joining the European Environmental Bureau, Europe’s largest federation of environmental organisations.

Stressing that IDEA must engage “with everyone without exception” in relation to motivating policy-makers to create the enabling conditions for increased investment in a transition to a green economy, as espoused by UNEP’s Green Economy Report, he said the Association expected to receive its core annual funding of approximately €10,000 through the Irish Environmental Network from the Government shortly, although this would be insufficient to cover all of its activities.

http://www.ideaireland.org/

(source: Irish Medical Times)