EDUCATION
AND PUBLIC AWARENESS
- Public Awareness Strategy (Objective, Key Issues, Target audience)
- Environmental Education
- Civil society involvement
Education and public awareness, in terms of decision making,
are key-elements of any nature conservation strategy. That’s
the way to gain public support and to promote sustainable development,
by improving the degree of knowledge and understanding of environmental
issues, among tourists and local population.
By developing coordinated programs of ecological education
and education/awareness strategies for the public, we can
promote values supporting the understanding of nature conservation
and discouraging activities incompatible with sustainable
development.
PUBLIC
AWARENESS STRATEGY
The people, inhabitants and visitors, cannot be separated
from the nature of the Delta; their presence and activities
have an important impact on the heritage of the Delta.
With this in mind, the Danube Delta Biosphere
Reserve Authority (DDBRA) has set itself the objective of
raising public awareness among local people, visitors and
other groups with an interest in the Danube Delta.
The first Public Awareness Strategy has been
developed since the year 2000 with the support and experience
of international organizations, through a participatory process
that has involved the key stakeholder groups in the Danube
Delta.
It is the first step in the development
of real co-operation and communication between the DDBRA and
other interested groups, and will also act to improve internal
communication within the DDBRA.
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objective of the strategy is to support the conservation
and sustainable management of the natural resources of the
Danube Delta, improving socio-economic benefits for the local
population in the Danube Delta, and the financial sustainability
of DDBRA, through the implementation of an integrated and
clearly targeted public awareness strategy.
The preparation of the strategy has been
funded by the World Bank GEF Danube Delta Biodiversity Project.
The international conservation organization, Fauna & Flora
International, has facilitated its preparation.
The preparation of this strategy has taken place from October
1999 - May 2000.
There are a number of features about the way this strategy
has been prepared that should be noted:
- This is the first public awareness strategy developed
for any protected area in Romania.
- A wide group of stakeholders have been closely involved
in the preparation.
- The participatory approaches used have helped to develop
a more integrated, effective and agreeable strategy.
- DDBRA has acknowledged the importance of stakeholder
consultation in decision and policy making.
- Participatory approaches have been shown to be effective
in reducing conflict, changing attitudes, building partnerships
and disseminating information.
- A broad approach to public awareness has been taken,
recognizing the need for many different organizations
and mechanisms to be used to build awareness not only
of DDBRA and the Delta, but also of wider social and environmental
issues.
Key issues
A number of key issues have been identified
which the public awareness strategy will address. These have
been considered to be the most important issues by the organizations
participating in the preparation of the strategy, DDBRA staff,
as well as the experience of previous activities in the Delta
(e.g. GEF project activities, DDI, Bird Life International,
etc).
The 12 main issues are:
1.
Pollution
2. Understanding the reasons for the establishment
of DDBR
3. DDBRA’s public image
4. Economic and social difficulties of local
people
5. Internal communication within DDBRA
6. Communication between DDBRA and local
stakeholders
7. Different administrative bodies involved
in DDBR management
8. Environmental education and awareness
9. Legislation interpretation
10. Exploitation of natural resources
11. Unfulfilled tourism potential
12. Maintaining local culture and traditions
Target groups
An enormous variety of different groups has
an interest in the Delta or influences it in some way or other.
This strategy has been designed to reach as wide an audience
as possible, as follows:
- Local people (all communities in the DDBR, particularly
people using the Delta's resources)
- Tourists
- Local authorities (all legislative and executive decision
makers, including Tulcea County Council, government, politicians),DDBRA
(administrative staff and wardens)
- Mass media (newspapers, radio, television)
- Businesses and investors operating in the DDBR
- Children, students and teachers
- National and international donors
- Local NGOs
- Specialists
- Religious groups
- Tulcea inhabitants
- Elderly people
- International partners
- National level groups
ENVIRONMENTAL
EDUCATION
The environmental education is a process
meant to improve life quality, serving the recognition of
environmental values and clarification of environmental concepts.
Environmental education can help people acquire knowledge,
skills, motivations, values and commitment needed for the
efficient management of the Earth’s resources and maintaining
environmental quality.
The objectives of the environmental education around the
world are similar: to maintain and improve environmental quality
and to prevent future environmental issues.
Paradoxically, the more educated and advance a society is,
the bigger its impact on the environment is, due to higher
needs and pollution levels. The conclusion is that education
solely in not enough for sustainable development.
In areas with low levels of education, the economy is usually
reduced to agriculture and extraction. The higher the level
of education, the more sophisticated industries appear and
consumption is elevated, just as pollution is etc.
All these aspects emphasize the complexity of the connection
between sustainable development and education.
Education for sustainable development
The concern and the hope of the entire world
are directed towards those who will be the beneficiaries of
a healthy environment and in the same time influencing the
maintaining and improvement of the relation MAN – NATURE:
the youth. The United Nations declared the decade 2005 –
2014 as dedicated to the Education for Sustainable
Development.
Chapter 36 from Agenda 21 relates to the
importance of the education for sustainable development in
the following terms:
- necessity to reorient education as promoter of sustainable
development
- sustainable development awareness
- training importance
In reorienting education for sustainable
development, the initiators of education programs must find
the balance between future knowledge and the traditional way
of life. Very often, the traditional way of life surprises
us with ecological solutions to resources usage. Returning
to this way of life may be impossible for those living an
urban life, but the cultivation of the traditional values
could be a good support for the 21st century sustainable development.
MAIN ACTIVITIES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL EDUCATION IN THE DDBR
- DDBRA's specialists visits in schools, video presentation
of the most important aspects of Danube Delta and discussions
on various topics concerning environment protection, in
the kinder gardens and schools
- Activities organized for the special events like “The
Environment Day”, ”The International Day of
Water”, “The Earth Day”, “The International
Day of Wetlands”, “The Ozone Layer Protection
Day” with children and teenagers participation.
- Exhibitions with artworks realized by pupils and students
- The “Eco - Puppets in the Danube Delta” Project
- Editing of the Eco-puppets handbook (1999) - a practical
guide for environmental educators, teachers and arts workers
- written and produced for publication in English and Romanian
by the Broads Authority
- Editing of the “Practical Handbook of activities
for environmental education”
- Editing in 2002 of the practical guide “Nature’s
Voice” in collaboration with Kinder Garden no. 19
Tulcea, including practical activities and worksheets
- The Children Paper “Micii Ecologisti” - four
editions, containing drawings, pictures, essays made by
the children from the DDBR territory
- Public awareness strategy and ecological education –
identifies environmental education as a distinct part of
the awareness
- Information sessions for the local population concerning
DDBRA regulations (industrial fishing, other activities,
fish species that need protection etc)
- Seminaries and workshops with the target groups from
the DDBR
- Training courses for wardens - communication and public
awareness was a special theme
- Distribution in schools of booklets and folders with
plants and animals from Danube Delta
- The launch of an experimental environmental education
programme within Tulcea Visitor Centre
- Collaboration with non-governmental organizations for
the environmental education
- Recruiting of volunteer eco-agents
Map of the DDBRA
Visitors' Centers
ECOLOGICAL
CALENDAR
| Date |
Signification |
Historic |
| 2nd of February |
World Wetlands Day |
It marks the date of the signing
of the Convention on Wetlands on 2 February 1971, in the
Iranian city of Ramsar. |
| 22 of March |
World Water Day |
Was designated in 1992 at
the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
(UNCED) in Rio de Janeiro. |
| 1st of April |
Birds Day |
It is
a Romanian celebration who’s origin is between
the two world wars when it was largely promoted, especially
in schools. With the occasion of this event, the students
were installing artificial nests in the trees and were
studying the nature, learning how to be concretely involved
in birds protection activities.
The Romanian Ornithological Society is the organization
which, after 1990, has promoted this celebration.
|
| 22nd of April |
Earth Day |
Even
though it was proclaimed for the first time on March
21st (Vernal Equinox) in San Francisco, it is celebrated
on 22nd of April at the initiative of the American senator
Gaylord Nelson. |
| 22nd of May |
Biodiversity Day |
"Biological
diversity" means the variability among living organisms
from all sources including, terrestrial, marine and
other aquatic ecosystems and the ecological complexes
of which they are part; this includes diversity within
species, between species and of ecosystems. |
| 24th of May |
European Day of Parks
|
The
European Day of Parks was launched by the EUROPARC Federation
with the aim of raising the profile of Europe's protected
areas and generating public support for their aims and
work.
It was first held in 1999 and events have been celebrated
across Europe on an annual basis on and around 24 May,
a date that has been chosen to commemorate the creation
of Europe's first nine national parks in Sweden on 24
May 1909.
|
| 5th of June |
World Environment
Day |
It was
established by the United Nations General Assembly in
1972 to mark the opening of the Stockholm Conference
on the Human Environment. |
| 29th of June |
Danube’s Day |
Danube’s
Day was first celebrated in 2004 by the International
Commission for the Protection of the Danube River (ICPDR),
after 10 years from the signature of the Danube Protection
Convention by all countries in the Danube basin.
On the 29th of June 1994, all countries from the Danube
catchments area, including Romania, signed at Sofia
(Bulgaria) this important document, bringing into attention
the need to protect this important European river.
|
| 16th of September |
International Ozone
Day |
The
United Nations first declared International Ozone Day
in 1995, in commemoration of the date on which countries
signed the Montreal Protocol on substances that deplete
the Ozone Layer in 1987. |
First Monday of
October
|
World Habitat Day |
Every
year, since 1985, when it was designated by the General
Assembly, World Habitat Day has been celebrated on the
first Monday in October. This day has been set aside
by the United Nations for the world to reflect on the
state of human settlements and the basic right to adequate
shelter and to remind the world of its collective responsibility
for the future of the human habitat.
|
| 31st of October |
Black Sea Day |
On the
31st of October 1996, the environment ministries from
the 6 riparian countries - Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania,
Russian Federation, Turkey and Ukraine – signed
the Strategic Plan of Action for the Rehabilitation
and Protection of the Black Sea – the most isolated
sea from the world ocean. |
DDBRA
COLABORATION WITH CIVIL SOCIETY
Considering the importance of the civil society
involvement, as well as the need to increase public awareness
and the attitude of responsibility towards the environment,
the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve Authority encourages and
develops the partnership with all civil society sectors, non-governmental
organizations and public or private institutions that activates
in the field of the environmental protection and sustainable
development in the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve perimeter.
The Commissariat for the Civil Society
Phone: 021 314 60 67; 021 314 61 65
Fax: 021 315 31 99
www.comisariat.ro
E-mail: juridic@comisariat.ro
NON-GOVERNMENTAL
ORGANIZATIONS
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