In June, government officials, local authorities, NGOs, scientists and young people will gather in Vienna for a series of activities looking at the progress made and challenges ahead for reducing environmental hazards to children’s health.

The meetings will take place against the back-drop of the WHO Mid Term Review of the Budapest Declaration on Environment and Health from 10 to 15 June 2007.

Intergovernmental Mid-Term Review (13-15 June)

The intergovernmental meeting, hosted by the Austrian Government, aims to assess progress in the implementation of commitments within the Children’s Environment and Health Action Plan for Europe (CEHAPE) and the Budapest Declaration agreed to by governments of the European Region in June 2004 during the Fourth Ministerial Conference on Environment and Health. Read HEAL section on the Budapest conference.

Countries will report back on the development of national children’s environment and health action plans and on the implementation of actions addressing national priorities and goals established in Budapest such as ensuring safe water, preventing injuries and promoting physical activity, ensuring clean air and chemical-free environments.

The conference will be divided into three main sessions:
 Reporting back by Member States, international, intergovernmental (IGO) and nongovernmental (NGO) organizations and young people
 Learning from experience: assessing the Environment and Health Process as a whole
 Looking ahead: ensuring continuity of the Environment and Health Process by linking the Fourth Conference on Environment and Health of 2004 to the next one in 2009.

 For more information, a provisional agenda and background material, please visit the conference website.

NGO Strategy Conference (11-12 June)

Health and environmental NGOs from across the European region will meet on 11 and 12 June in Vienna to outline the key issues for making progress on improving children’s environmental health, and share good practice on how NGOs are contributing to CEHAPE goals. During the NGO Conference, to be held just prior to the Inter ministerial Conference, participants will hear from keynote speakers on the urgency of protecting children’s health from poor air and water quality and chemical hazards and reducing the risk of accidents as well as working towards safer and healthier built environments to tackle childhood obesity.

One of the world’s leading neurodevelopmental researchers, Prof Philippe Grandjean, will give a keynote speech about what policy measures are needed today to halt “the child brain drain”. Parallel sessions will look at progress and interesting projects around the four Regional Priority Goals. The outcome of the meeting will be an NGO declaration to be presented to ministers at the IMR. For more information, please contact marta@env-health.org.

 Read the final programme

INCHES scientific conference (10-12 June)

The Fourth International Conference on Children’s Health and the Environment will be held prior to the Intergovernmental Mid-Term Review, on 10-12 June.

This scientific conference, co-organised by the International Network on Children’s Health, Environment and Safety (INCHES), and supported the Health & Environment Alliance, will provide an international forum for the latest research findings in paediatric environmental health and for minimising childhood exposure to environmental contaminants.

 Read the programme

CEHAPE Awards (13 June)

An award for children’s environmental health (CEHAPE) will be presented to the 15 most inspiring, innovative and concrete projects that have made a difference in improving children’s environmental health across the 53 countries of the WHO European Region.

The contest, which is made possible thanks to the financial support of the Government of Austria, is being coordinated by HEAL. It aims to highlight some of the excellent projects that are helping to reduce the harm to children from environmental hazards, such as unsafe water, polluted air, injuries and chemicals. A fifth award will go to the best project illustrating participation by young people.

 Read the contest announcement.