ENVforum

13/12/2023

As the year comes to an end, the ENVforum team is sending all partners, participants and its sustainability community heartfelt Season’s Greetings! ❄ ☀

A big thank you to all of you for your collaborative spirit and support throughout 2023 where we further strengthened our work on sustainability and the circular economy and also celebrated a big milestone: our 20th Anniversary. 🙏 💚

We look forward to the new year and wish you all the best, continued success and prosperity. May our collective efforts across Asia and Europe contribute to a more sustainable and resilient future for all. 🌍 🌏

Like many of you, we will soon take a well-deserved end-of-the-year break. This time allows us to recharge and gear up for exciting opportunities that await us in 2️⃣ 0️⃣ 2️⃣ 4️⃣ !

From all partners

Asia-Europe Foundation - ASEF
Hanns Seidel Foundation Vietnam
ASEM SMEs Eco-Innovation Center (ASEIC)
Institute for Global Environmental Strategies IGES

With the financial support of the 🇪🇺

12/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( ) 🎉

Celebrating milestones: diverse activity portfolio across Asia and Europe

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Over the last two decades, the ENVforum team and its partners have been designing and implementing a broad range of initiatives focused on and environmental issues in almost 50 Asian and European countries.

We have been collaborating with government bodies, international organisations, NGOs, think tanks and higher education institutions to create knowledge, facilitate capacity building and strengthen collaboration between institutions and individuals.

We have been a platform and a bridge for efforts between two regions. The connections that we created between institutions and individuals continue to further grow and develop independently.

🌍 🤝

10/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( ) 🎉

Celebrating milestones: Sustainable Development on the Media Agenda at the 11th ASEM Foreign Ministers’ Meeting

A decade ago, from 9-12 November 2023, the 9th ASEF Journalists’ Colloquium took place in Gurgaon, India, in conjunction with the 11th ASEM Foreign Ministers’ Meeting. 🇮🇳

Over 40 journalists and environmental experts from 29 Asian and European countries gathered to discuss pressing environmental issues, sustainable development goals, poverty reduction, energy and green growth, and specific media challenges in reporting on these topics. 🗞 📻 📺 💻 💚

The journalists shared how these issues are reported on in their own countries, especially how they link international issues with local concerns and explain them to their target audiences. Journalists also addressed challenges of reporting on environmental issues, such as dealing with technical data, making concrete stories out of “abstract” green issues, moving beyond disaster and crisis reporting, and decoupling business interests from journalism.

Here are a few snapshots from the meeting:

🎬 Video: https://tinyurl.com/fjsbv3w8

As an outcome of the meeting, ASEF published the Media Handbook “Sustainable Development Reporting for Journalists” - edited by Mike McCluskey. 🙏 In view of the ongoing climate crisis, the Handbook's relevance is more important than ever.

Some 30 journalists and environmental experts gathered at the 9th ASEF Journalists' Colloquium to discuss the Media and the Green Agenda: Reporting on Sustai...

08/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( ) 🎉

Celebrating milestones: Contributions to the achievement of the

Since 2013, the ENVforum has been actively engaged in the global discussion surrounding the SDGs, which were adopted by the United Nations Member States at the UN Sustainable Development Summit in September 2015. Its diverse projects and activities have been contributing to the bottom-up process that supports the implementation and monitoring of SDGs by providing Asian and European countries with key insights into sustainable development planning.

We continue our mission at the

With Felix Genk, Resident Representative, Hanns Seidel Foundation Mongolia; Gina Pulawska, Associate Director, Governance and Sustainable Development, Asia-Europe Foundation - ASEF; and Markus Ferber, MdEP, Chairman, Hanns-Seidel-Stiftung

07/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( ) 🎉

Celebrating milestones: Knowledge Creation through over 40 Publications and Reports 📚 📘 📑

One of the ENVforum’s key objectives is to foster knowledge exchange and to advance the understanding and awareness of climate change and environmental issues. By collaborating with renowned experts and institutions, we have been producing over 40 insightful publications and reports over the past two decades. Through this, we have not only contributed to the Asia-Europe dialogue on these critical matters but also facilitated the dissemination of valuable insights that empower communities and policymakers to make informed decisions for a sustainable future.

Here are a few reading recommendations for you during the December holiday period:

- 2022 Overview of Climate Change Mitigation Efforts in ASEM Countries E-Version (2022)
- Drivers and Barriers for the Reduction of Single-Use Plastics in the Member Countries of the Asia-Europe Meeting (20210
- Closing the Loop: ASEM’s Transition Towards Achieving a Circular Economy (2019)
- Handbook for ASEAN Government Officials on Climate Change and SDGs (2016)
- Who Will Pay for the Sustainable Development Goals? (2015)

A big thank you to all partner organisations, editors and authors who contributed to these publications, amongst them
Hanns Seidel Foundation Vietnam, Institute for Global Environmental Strategies IGES, ASEM SMEs Eco-Innovation Center (ASEIC)SEI - Stockholm Environment Institute

06/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( ) 🎉

Celebrating milestones: Asia-Europe Lecture Tours 📢

The Asia-Europe Lecture Tours was a programme series where opinion leaders from Asia and Europe specialising in specific thematic areas were invited to visit universities and think tanks in the other region to share their expertise and perspectives.

The first Asia-Europe Lecture Tour on Environment and Sustainable Development took place from 21 to 30 May 2008. Ella Antonio, President of the Earth Council Asia-Pacific, spoke about the topic “Pursuing Sustainabilty in Asia: Challenges, Approaches and Good Practices”.

The Lecture Tour focused on the experiences of selected Asian countries in mainstreaming sustainable development issues into overall development policies. Ella Antonio highlighted the role of governance and capacity building in ensuring that the policies are not only well-conceived but also well implemented and monitored.

Watch this short video clip and hear more about her lectures and visits to five European countries: https://tinyurl.com/yc3zkydv
.. starting in Kaunas, Lithuania 🇱🇹, where the event was hosted by Vytauto Didžiojo Universitetas, followed by Tallinn, Estonia 🇪🇪 , with SEI - Stockholm Environment Institute being the host; then Riga, Latvia 🇱🇻 , organised by the Stockholm School of Economics; Dublin, Ireland 🇮🇪 , hosted by the of International and European Affairs (IIEA), and finally Brussels, Belgium 🇧🇪 , organised by then EuropeAid (AIDCO), European Commission.

Ms Ella Antonio, President of the Earth Council Asia-Pacific reflects on her experiences during the 25th Asia-Europe Lecture Tour on "Pursuing Sustainibilty ...

05/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( )

Celebrating milestones: building a community of partner organisations and people 🤝

David Stanners has been part of the ENVforum community since the early beginnings and significantly contributed to its development with his knowledge and expertise, outreach and networks. 💚

Here is a short video that we recorded with him over a decade ago, just before the COP15 in Copenhagen: https://tinyurl.com/59hpfn37

David Stanners was then Head of International Cooperation of the European Environment Agency. In the video, he talks about the EU's and its impact on Asia and shares thoughts on the importance of dialogue in finding solutions to the environmental crisis.

Just a few weeks ago, we welcomed David again at the Conference 2023 in Brussels, Belgium, which was organised by the ENVforum, Hanns Seidel Foundation Vietnam ASEM SMEs Eco-Innovation Center (ASEIC) and Institute for Global Environmental Strategies IGES, and supported by. ASEANcham EU and the Confederation of European Senior Expert Services

The flourished because of its strong relations with partner institutions and alumni.

Mr David Stanners, Head of International Cooperation of the European Environment Agency (EEA) talks about the EU's environmental policy and its impact to Asi...

04/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( ) 🎉

Celebrating milestones: two decades of inspiration and initiation of bi-regional dialogue and collaboration on, amongst other topics:

Technology Partnerships for ☀ 💧
Sustainable 🏙 🌆
Chemicals and Management ⚗ ☣
of Food Supply Systems 🥗 🍲
Financing Options for the Implementation of the 💰 💶
and Ecosystem Services 🐝 🌺
Integrated and Measures in 🍅 🌾
and Transformation ♻ 🏭

03/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( ) 🎉

Celebrating milestones: the set up of the Steering Committee representing key Asian and European institutions in the environment sector, leading international organisations and think tanks. 💪

ASEAN
European Environment Agency
Asian Development Bank
Perspectives Climate Change
Earth Council Asia-Pacific Office
KEHATI
European Commission, DG Environment
Research Center for Sustainable Development, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences
The Regional Environmental Center for Central and Eastern Europe

Their advice and guidance was crucial for the establishment and early development of the and for becoming a robust player and reputable platform for Asia-Europe collaboration. 🙏

02/12/2023

20 Years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( )

👏 Celebrating milestones: the establishment

The ENVforum was initiated in 2003 by the Asia-Europe Foundation - ASEF together with Hanns-Seidel-Stiftung in Germany the Institute for Global Environmental Strategies IGES in Japan, and the UN Environment Programme.

The aim:

1️⃣ Tackling environmental challenges through international co-operation: environmental degradation deepened the inter-dependences between countries. Effective solutions to this problem required an increased level of international co-operation. 💪 🌐

2️⃣ Deepening bi-regional responses in Asia and Europe:

Asia-Europe co-operation on the environment was envisioned to create a significant “bloc” on environmental issues which could strongly influence global action. 🌍 🌏

Following calls for collective action made in the Asia-Europe Vision Group Report (1999), Asia-Europe Ministers at their Meetings in Beijing, China (2002) and Lecce, Italy (2003) as well as Asia-Europe Leaders at their Meeting in Seoul, Korea (2000), the Asia-Europe Environment Forum (ENVforum) was set up as a bi-regional platform for dialogue and co-operation for , and representatives.

01/12/2023

We are celebrating 20 years Asia-Europe Environment Forum ( ) at the end of this year! 🎉 🎂

Established in 2003, we are proud of and reflecting on 2 decades of creating impact through

… bi-regional collaboration on with over 100 high-level international meetings, roundtables, conferences and workshops across Asia and Europe 🤝 🌐

… knowledge-sharing, knowledge creation and for over 2,000 policy makers, civil society and business representatives from across 51 countries 💡 📚

… the facilitation and promotion of tangible on-the-ground and robust across all sectors that emphasise environmental, social, and economic impacts 🌿 💚 ♻

Throughout the month of December, we will share with you institutional and personal stories about the early beginnings and the journey of the ENVforum. 🎒

Happy Birthday to the ENVforum and its community of partners and participants!