E N V I R O N M E N T A L T R A I N I N G
Next step for environmental training
By Adriana Craciun
The Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe (REC) is still an active player in training in Central and Eastern Europe. Through its Capacity Building Program, it provides training at both the institutional and personal level for environmental organisations and individuals. For institutions, the Environmental Management Training Centers (EMTC) Network of 11 environmental training institutions in 8 CEE and NIS countries brings together one of the largest pools of trainers and professional experts in the field of adult education. EMTCs address the training needs of government, businesses and NGOs throughout the region.
For individuals, the Junior Fellowship Program (JFP) helps NGOs that need to develop management skills, stronger leaders or fundraising specialists. Some 200 environmental activists from the region have already been trained at the REC with significant demand for more.
As the environmental scene changes continuously, so do the work of NGOs and the quality of services that they provide. NGOs now find themselves dealing with a wide range of activities - from organising Earth Day events at town squares to lobbying at the national level.
All these require a high level of skills and a continuing knowledge of environmental trends. That is why former JFP participants requested additional training, especially in leadership and management skills. Hence, the Advanced Workshops Project was born.
The project shifts its focus from building the capacities of organisations through the training of NGO representatives to developing the personal capacity of those fellows who felt strongly motivated to contributing to the environmental movement in general.
Rather than learning how to write a project proposal, participants in the new project want to learn how to be good leaders, effective lobbyists at the local or government level and effective trainers who are able to multiply their knowledge.
In 1998, with the generous support of the Staples Trust of the UK, the REC organised two training sessions of Advanced Workshops. The feedback from the participants was very positive and requests for more are high.
"The content and the style of the workshop - perfect! I'd like to have that knowledge," said one participant. "The workshop was very useful for my personal development and for my NGO," said another.
Thanks to the Staples Trust, the REC's Advanced Workshops will again continue in 1999.
(Contact acraciun@rec.org.)
