Activists say they are allowed a higher level of involvement in the climate change process, but they still feel that they can't do enough By Pavel Antonov A pure failure. A non-conclusion. A masquerade. This is the type of vocabulary used by the region's activists to describe the results of the November climate change meeting in the Hague. But, while they were frustrated by lack of international consensus, NGO members from Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) had to admit that the process was more welcoming to non-profit groups than other environmental work in which they are involved. They also seemed to agree with the general directions that their own governments were taking on the issue, which is perhaps under-represented by the region's non-profit sector. Activists make their presence felt The presence of non-governmental organisations was quite visible in the Hague - through their creative protest actions all over the city and through groups making a permanent contribution to the detailed workings of the climate change negotiations. Despite their disappointment with the outcome of discussions, NGOs from CEE are not necessarily opposed to the position of their governments - which, reasonably, follow the general position of the European Union in climate change talks. Many Hungarian activists actually praised the work of their government's delegation. The active involvement of NGOs throughout the process of climate change talks, begun in 1992, has helped attract mass media coverage and helped give the impression that the world's public can actively express its opinion on the matter. This is probably one reason why NGOs have much more freedom and access to the climate change negotiations process than they do during debates over other controversial environmental issues, such as nuclear power. But this open-door policy with NGOs raises some concern among activists. "Climate change is an important issue, but I have the feeling that actors on the climate talks just try to keep people and NGOs busy," says Ada Amon, who was the Hungarian Energy Club's representative in the Hague. She adds that, even though participation in the climate negotiations process is relatively open, it requires a profound knowledge and a lot of time for preparation - two resources that many NGO representatives lack. The various creative, and sometimes vexing, forms of protests on the streets of the Hague, and at the previous meeting in Kyoto, were often criticised for being counterproductive and over reactive. But the activists say that their protests are pointing out problems and issues that are not being faced by negotiators. "Failure to answer important questions - this is the real problem, and not the street actions in the Hague," Amon says, adding that negotiators "should not judge the demonstrators just because they fail to answer their questions." Issue gets limited attention in region Climate change is apparently considered a serious issue by NGOs in CEE. But there are few NGOs in the region that define themselves as being dedicated exclusively to climate change issues. Climate issues are usually addressed by groups in one of three more traditional areas of NGO activities in CEE: sustainable agriculture, transport and energy. Some inter-NGO networks, like the Climate Action Network (CAN), channel the efforts of different NGOs in this field. But the level of NGO involvement in climate-oriented work differs significantly from country to country. Efforts to intensify the exchange of information and foster joint work of NGOs in the region have been undertaken by the CANCEE Co-operation group, the climate change initiative of the Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe (REC) and others. Last year, the Bulgarian Ministry of Environment and Waters contracted the Borrowed Nature Association to carry out a massive awareness-raising campaign entitled "Save the Ozone." The REC, meanwhile, helped focus NGOs on climate change work through its Cooperative Grants Program in 2000. Using this funding, the National Society of Conservationists in Hungary, together with the Polish Ecological Club and the Green Library of Latvia, wrote a report comparing their countries' mechanisms for "joint implementation," which is an instrument described in the Kyoto Protocol to encourage projects that reduce greenhouse gases. The NGOs gave their report to the meeting in the Hague. The Energy Club used its grant to develop recommendations for the use of natural gas as a cleaner fuel, to contribute to lowering carbon-based emissions in Hungary.

Jan Pronk, Dutch environment minister and the head of the November climate talks in the Hague, removes a sandbag from a barricade built by NGO activists. Environmentalists had gathered bags of sand from around the world, and put them in the way of official negotiators, to demonstrate frustration with the barriers to true action on climate change.