Expansion in the Czech Republic will come quickly. An in-country coordinator will be contracted to oversee the operations of three existing training institutions that have already been identified to deliver environmental management training courses.
A new project is also underway in Albania where the situation is entirely different. Here, there are no pre-existing training institutions that can simply be molded into effective EMTCs. Before an EMTC can even be considered, a "train-the-trainers" program must introduce potential instructors to a selected group of core courses. Once this is accomplished, these same instructors will be trained to deliver the entire range of EMTC courses. Eventually, Albania's top training facilties will join other premier management training institutions in CEE in a loose, capacity-building network.
The growth of the EMTC network is not limited to these six countries alone. The newest component is to provide support services to all trainers in the Region - without institutionalizing them into the Network. This will include discussion groups and workshops on various aspects of training and course design, a "Who's Who" guide to environmental trainers in CEE, guides on training tools and techniques, and a computerized events database.
The EMTC Network is fulfilling a crucial role in the development of environmentally aware policymakers in Central and Eastern Europe by training government officials, NGO members, academics and business people in the fine art of environmental management. "We are providing support to the leading training institutions in the Region in order to improve their efficiency, effectiveness and sustainability," says Miroslav Chodak, the EMTC network project manager.
Originally started with funding and support from the EPA, the three independent not-for-profit centers in Poland, Hungary and Bulgaria delivered EPA-developed courses that had been translated into the local languages and adapted to the specific economic, cultural and historical conditions that exist in each country. These courses still compose the 12 core training modules on topics such as environmental economics, environmental policy and environmental impact assessments.
The original idea was for the EPA to fund the first three centers for up to three years, at which point they would become self-sustainable. But this may not be realistic considering the tough economic times that have befallen almost every country in CEE.
Despite the economic woes, the Network is expanding faster than a hot-air balloon and attendance is steadily on the rise. "Now we really have to work hard for these centers to become self-sufficient. This Region won't be funded forever."