Over the past few years, many climate experts and activists have emerged in the EECCA region. It’s time for us to come together and create a platform to share our experiences about local, national and regional climate actions, as well as ambitious climate policies in each country of the region. We are running out of time to tackle the global climate crisis.

Therefore, CAN EECCA, Friends of the Earth Germany (BUND), Friedrich Ebert Foundation (FES) and Green Movements of Georgia / Friends of the Earth Georgia (GMG) have decided to join forces to support the climate movement in the region, strengthen collaboration between organizations and active individuals to find new opportunities and to make your work even more visible in the EECCA region and internationally.

We are proud to announce the “Climate Dialogues 2021” in the format of supported working groups to offer a platform for civil society to discuss how to raise climate ambition in different relevant fields.

As a participant you will get the chance to exchange with like-minded experts from the EECCA region to jointly develop ideas and demands in the respective fields of climate politics. The above-mentioned hosts will set up an environment that provides you with resources to ensure regional and international outreach of your products.

We expect that by the end of the year you will have a better understanding of the situation in the region and will be able to bring your topics and projects to the international level. Also, within the course of “Climate Dialogues 2021” you will be able to create workshops, plan a side event at COP26, or write a joint article. Each working group will also write a paper highlighting their results that will be published at the end of the year.

This is our shared response to online life and the need to become stronger in the face of global challenges.

We believe that more than 50 organizations from 11 countries make a huge impact on climate policies in the region if we join forces!

Group names and topics:

  • Renewable energy

A transition to renewable energies brings many advantages — better health, decentralization, and many new, safe jobs. Energy efficiency and energy saving measures help to reduce both costs, and global heating — the most sustainable kWh is the one which has never been produced. Looking at the poor condition of the energy sector in the EECCA region, the purpose of this group is to promote renewable energy, energy saving, and energy efficiency on a regional, national, and local level.

  • Education and outreach

We can limit the climate crisis only if we act together. To that end, we need to convince as many people as possible that change is needed — and that a shift to an environmentally sustainable society brings many benefits for all of us. No matter whether we want to convince young people, our family members, media representatives, or even politicians — how we communicate is often more important than what we say.This working group shall unite the efforts of everyone who works in the field of climate education, climate communication, and awareness raising.

  • Climate policy

If you are working on the topics of implementation of the Paris Agreement, development of the Green Deal in your country, lobbying for national climate and energy legislation or other components of climate policy, then this group is for you. Without a systematic approach and synchronization with civil society, it is impossible to create an effective, equitable climate policy. The aim of this working group is to exchange best practices of public participation in decision-making processes and discuss effective methods for implementation of truly ambitious climate solutions at the national and local level.

  • Adaptation and biodiversity

Glaciers are melting, fires are intensifying, ecosystems are shifting. We cannot prevent many of the impacts of climate change, but we can prepare for them. Adaptation of cities and communities, agriculture and forestry, biodiversity and wildlife conservation are integral parts of overcoming the climate crisis. The goal of this group is to find the best solutions for adaptation to climate change and biodiversity conservation, from using more resilient crops to a national adaptation plan.

  • Cities and mobility

Imagine a city with a lot of public space, trees, lawns and community gardens, fresh air, and with safe and cheap transport for everyone — be it by bicycle or by bus. Imagine travelling to your family members, or to your holiday destination without causing tons of CO2 emissions — in a fast, comfortable, and affordable train. If you are working on realizing those visions for a better life for all of us, then join this group.

  • Just transition

The fossil fuel era will come to an end. Not only only will coal-mines be closed, but also the heavy industry, and other sectors have to be completely decarbonized. But what about the social consequences of this phase-out? If you are working on finding new, sustainable solutions for workers and communities to make sure no one is left behind, then this group is for you!

How to join the group?

Even if several groups look interesting to you — please just choose the one where you can bring in most of your expertise. Participation in the working groups will be quite time-intensive, and sometimes group work will run in parallel — so unless you found a way to clone yourself, please make your choice for one group only.

Large organizations can send more than one representative to different working groups. We also want to make sure that everyone involved is able to follow the progress of the respective other groups.

Registration form — tap to join your group.

We have enormous potential to fight the climate crisis and create the world we would like to leave for future generations. We invite you to unleash and enhance this potential together!