"ENVIRONMENT FOR EUROPE" PROCESS
The “Environment for Europe” process is a unique partnership of the member States within the UNECE region, organizations of the United Nations system represented in the region, other intergovernmental organizations, regional environment centres, non-governmental organizations and other major groups. The United Nations Economic Commission for Europe, which has been closely associated with the “Environment for Europe” process since the beginning, serves as secretariat to the process.
Mr. Josef Vavrousek, Environment Minister of what was then Czechoslovakia, initiated the “Environment for Europe” process. The first Ministerial Conference took place near Prague, at Dobris Castle, on 21-23 June 1991. Five more conferences have taken place since then: the Lucerne (Switzerland) Conference, on 28-30 April 1993; the Sofia (Bulgaria) Conference, on 23-25 October 1995; the Aarhus (Denmark) Conference, on 23-25 June 1998; and the Kiev (Ukraine) Conference, on 21-23 May 2003; the Belgrade (Serbia) Conference, on 10-12 October 2007.
At the Sixth Ministerial Conference "Environment for Europe" (Belgrade, Serbia) ministers agreed to undertake a reform of the “Environment for Europe” (EfE) process in order to ensure that the process remains relevant and valuable, and to strengthen its effectiveness as a mechanism for improving environmental quality and the lives of people across the region.