OSCE boosts local action and regional networking on addressing the interlinkages between climate change, air pollution and health in South-Eastern Europe
On 6 June 2024, representatives from municipalities, civil society organizations and academia from South-Eastern Europe convened for the second time in Sarajevo to present the results and lessons learned from five small-scale activities that were implemented between December 2023 and April 2024 in municipalities across South-Eastern Europe. The meeting was organized by the Office of the Co-ordinator of OSCE Economic and Environmental Activities (OCEEA) in collaboration with the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The activities built on two key moments. First, the OSCE-adelphi report Regional Assessment for South-Eastern Europe: Security implications of climate change, which identified air pollution as a major challenge in the region. Second, they built on the regional kick-off meeting on 21 September 2023 in Sarajevo, which launched the regional initiative in South-Eastern Europe to connect municipalities, civil society organizations and academia with the aim of fostering collaboration to reduce the health impacts of air pollution and climate change.
“From creating green oases and climate-resilient urban spaces and working with youth and vulnerable communities to generating data on the genotoxic health impact of industrial air pollution, the results of these diverse activities demonstrate what can be achieved through collaboration and partnership,“ said Thomas Busch, Deputy Head of the OSCE Mission to Bosnia and Herzegovina, during his opening remarks.
These small-scale demonstrative activities were implemented:
(1) Clean Air for Vulnerable Communities implemented by Environmental & Territorial Management Institute, Albania
(2) Enhancing understanding of the climate change, air pollution and health nexus through genotoxicity testing, implemented by Aarhus Centre Zenica (Eko Forum NGO), Bosnia and Herzegovina
(3) Capacity-building and public awareness campaign on the impacts of climate change and air pollution on health implemented by Green Home, Montenegro
(4) Raising awareness on the impacts of Climate Change and Air Pollution on health among youth; and creating of Green Oases in Tetovo implemented by Eco Guerilla, North Macedonia
(5) Supporting climate-resilient urban spaces through a ‘Green Know-How Tool Box’, implemented by Novi Sad Environmental Movement, Serbia
“These five projects are great examples of how taking local action can look,” said Patrizia Albrecht, Climate Affairs Adviser at OCEEA. “It was a pleasure to accompany the projects during the last months and to receive feedback from the local stakeholders and implementing partners on their achievement in terms of raising awareness and building capacities to address the impacts of air pollution and climate change on health across South-Eastern Europe. We look forward to continuing our support of the networks we have established, as the need for regional co-operation on the interlinkages between climate change, air pollution and health remains high.”
In addition to the project presentations, experts from UNICEF and the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency also contributed their invaluable expertise and insights to the discussion.
This second regional meeting, titled “Climate change and security in South Eastern Europe: Tackling challenges at the interface of air pollution and health”, was organized within the framework of the OSCE extra-budgetary project Strengthening Responses to Security Risks from Climate Change in South-Eastern Europe, Eastern Europe, the South Caucasus and Central Asia. The project is being implemented in partnership with adelphi and funded by Andorra, Austria, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, Norway, Poland, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland and the United States.