Tag: EANET Instrument

The Twenty-third Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting on the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

30 November 2021 – Bangkok, Thailand

The Twenty-third Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting on the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (IG23) took place from 24 to 25 November 2021, virtually, and gathered over 70 representatives of the EANET Participating Countries, Secretariat, and Network Center for the EANET, to make important decisions on the expansion of the scope of the EANET, among other topics.

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The IG23 Meeting

Chaired by Japan and co-chaired by Malaysia and Viet Nam, the IG23 started with the Opening Remarks from H.E. Mr. Yutaka Shoda, Vice-Minister, Ministry of the Environment, Japan, followed by Opening Remarks by Dr. Dechen Tsering, Regional Director, United Nations Environment Programme for Asia & the Pacific, and by Dr. Shiro Hatakeyama, Director General, Asia Center for Air Pollution Research.

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Welcome and Opening Remarks delivered during the IG23 meeting.

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Historical Decisions on the Expansion of the Scope of the EANET

Following the decision of the Twenty-second  Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting (IG22), held in November 2020, the EANET Participating Countries’ representatives have been working relentlessly on the process to expand the scope of the EANET, from acid deposition to also include a wider scope of atmospheric environment-related substances.

This historical progress required the EANET to develop a text supplementary document to the EANET Instrument, to define the scope of expansion and the target substances to be included in the EANET activities. In a landmark decision, 20 years after the creation of the Network, the IG23 has adopted the text of the Supplementary Document (Annex) to the Instrument for Strengthening the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia.

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Discussions among participants during the virtual IG23 meeting.

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The EANET Project Fund and Project Guideline, a new financial mechanism allowing EANET to build co-financed projects with partners in the region and beyond, has also been approved by the IG23.

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Ways Forward

In addition to these major decisions, the IG23 has also approved several important documents, including the Work Program and Budget of the EANET in 2022, and the Summary of the Twentieth Anniversary of the EANET publication, a new outreach document detailing the EANET’s past achievements and future opportunities.

As an important way forward for 2022, the EANET Participating Countries and partner organizations will be invited to start preparing and submitting project proposals for the pilot implementation of new EANET projects, in line with the EANET Project Guideline.

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Read the IG23’s Report of the Session (including the Decisions of IG23 in Annex 2), and discover the virtual meeting’s pictures on Flickr.

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Photos credits: all rights reserved to EANET.

The Working Group Meeting of EANET in 2022

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

29 August 2022 – Bangkok, Thailand

The Working Group Meeting (WG2022) of EANET in 2022 was organized virtually from 24 to 25 August 2022. It was attended by over 70 National Focal Points and representatives from the 13 EANET Participating Countries, and from the Secretariat and Network Center for the EANET, to discuss proposed projects submitted to the EANET Project Fund and other matters related to the expansion of the scope of the EANET.

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Opening Session

Chaired by Japan and co-chaired by Malaysia and Viet Nam, the WG2022 started with Opening Remarks from Dr. Dechen Tsering, Regional Director, United Nations Environment Programme for Asia & the Pacific, and by Welcome Remarks from Dr. Shiro Hatakeyama, Director General, Asia Center for Air Pollution Research.

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From left to right Mr. Bert Fabian, Dr. Dechen Tsering, and Dr. Hiro Hatakeyama, during the Opening Session of the WG2022 meeting

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EANET Project Fund

In November 2021, the Twenty-third Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting on the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (IG23) approved a new financial mechanism, the EANET Project Fund. The Working Group meeting of the EANET was organized for the EANET National Focal Points and representatives from the 13 Participating Countries to discuss the EANET Project Plans, which are project proposals, to be submitted for funding from the EANET Project Fund.

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Discussions among participants during the WG2022 meeting

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During the WG2022, eight EANET Project Plans were presented and discussed by the Session. These project plans focus mainly on the effects of atmospheric deposition on ecosystems, capacity building (related to Volatile Organic Compounds – VOCs, monitoring activities, emission inventories, and PM2.5), and research fellowship programs.

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Ways Forward

After the WG2022, the EANET Project Plans will be reviewed and discussed in October 2022 by the EANET Twenty-second Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC22) meeting, and finally submitted for approval to the 24th Intergovernmental meeting of the EANET (IG24) in November 2022.

Other important topics in line with the expansion of the Scope of the EANET adopted by IG23, were also discussed during the WG2022 and will be considered further by the IG23 in November 2022.

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Read the Report of the WG2022 and discover the virtual meeting’s pictures on Flickr.

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Photos credits: all rights reserved to EANET.

The Working Group Session 2 Meeting on Drafting MTP (2021-2025) and on Reviewing Scope of Instrument for the EANET

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

26 October 2020 – Bangkok, Thailand

The Working Group (WG) Session 2 Meeting on Drafting Medium Term Plan for the EANET (2021-2025) and on Reviewing Scope of Instrument for the EANET was held virtually from the 20th  to the 22nd  October 2020, gathering over 50 representatives from the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (EANET)’s Participating Countries.

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Shaping the Network’s future in action

Following the Session 1 of the meeting held last July, participants met again online to work together on the Medium Term Plan for the EANET (2021-2025) defining the Network’s future activities for the next 5 years, while also discussing a possible expansion of the scope of the EANET’s Instrument.

For three days, from 20-22 October 2020, National Focal Points and representatives from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Republic of Korea, Russia, Thailand, Philippines, and Viet Nam joined the EANET’s Secretariat, Network Center and the United Nations Environment Programme teams to discuss in detail how they envision the future of their Network.

The Session was initiated by the Welcome Remarks of Dr. Dechen Tsering, Regional Director, and Representative, United Nations Environment Programme for Asia & the Pacific, who emphasized the importance of the mandate of the EANET, as part of growing momentum for international cooperation on air quality in the region.

Dr. Shiro Hatakeyama, Director General, Asia Center for Air Pollution Research, delivered the Opening Remarks and highlighted the importance of the 2nd Working Group Meeting to determine the future activities of the EANET. Mr. Yuichi Nagasaka, Director of the Air Environment Division, Environmental Management Bureau, Ministry of Environment, Japan, also delivered Remarks to greet participants and reaffirm Japan’s support to the EANET.

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MTP for the EANET (2021-2025)

At the end of the 3-day meeting, the Session agreed on Recommendations to be submitted to the 22nd Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting, next November (IG22).

Screenshots from some participants and Network Center and Secretariat Team members, discussing the various Working Group Session 2 Meeting agenda items

In these Recommendations, it is suggested to adopt the final draft of Medium Term Plan (MTP) (2021-2025) as well as the final draft of Work Programme and Budget in 2021 (WP&B 2021) that will be prepared according to the discussion at the Working Group Meeting sessions and relevant follow-up discussions.

In addition, the Working Group recommended the IG22 to recognize that “some activities relating to air pollution are a major interest to Participating Countries but may be beyond the current scope of the EANET. This includes types of activities and/or substances or targets areas that are related to air pollution beyond acid deposition” and to “ Express support for the need to expand the scope of the Instrument.”

EANET National Focal Points will meet again at the IG22, from 25 to 26 November 2020 through an online platform and discuss the finalization of the MTP (2021-2025) and Work Programme and Budget for the EANET in 2021 by considering the Recommendations of the WG Meeting.

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Curious about EANET’s activity? Find out more about the next EANET Meeting dates on the Event’s page and discover the pictures of the Working Group Meetings on Flickr.

 

 

The Twenty-second Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting on the EANET

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

27 November 2020 – Bangkok, Thailand

The Twenty-second Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting (IG22) on the EANET was held virtually from 25 to 26 November 2020. It was concluded by major decisions on the approval of the Medium Term Plan (MTP) (2021-2025) and Work Programme and Budget in 2021, as well as the decision to start expanding the scope of EANET’s Instrument.

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The Twenty-second Session of the Intergovernmental Meeting

Over 50 representatives from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Republic of Korea, Russia, Thailand, Philippines, and Viet Nam participated in the IG22,  to discuss in detail how they envision the future of their Network.

Chaired by Thailand, the IG22 Session started with Welcome Remarks from Mr. Thalearngsak Petchsuwan, Deputy-Director General, Pollution Control Department, Ministry of Natural Resources and Environment, Thailand, followed by Opening Remarks by Dr. Dechen Tsering, Regional Director and Representative, United Nations Environment Programme for Asia & the Pacific, and by Dr. Shiro Hatakeyama, Director General, Asia Center for Air Pollution Research.

Screenshots from the Welcome and Opening Remarks delivered during the virtual IG22 meeting.
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Medium Term Plan for the EANET (2021-2025)

After almost two years of conducting several discussions among the Participating Countries, the IG22 approved the MTP for the EANET (2021-2025). In addition, the Session approved the Work Programme and Budget for EANET in 2021.

Detailing the actions that will take place during the next five years, the MTP for the EANET (2021-2025) regroups activities related to five key objectives: Objective 1: Monitoring of acid deposition including related chemical substances with quality assurance and quality control (QA/QC), Objective 2: Promotion of data utilization and dissemination, Objective 3: Promotion of capacity building, Objective 4: Enhancement of outreach activities and Objective 5: Enhancement of cooperation and collaboration.

Screenshots from some participants discussing during the virtual IG22 meeting.

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Future Activities Beyond Acid Deposition

The IG22 recognized activities related to air pollution as of major interest to Participating Countries, although considered beyond the current scope of the EANET.

For 20 years, based on the Instrument for the Strengthening the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (EANET), the EANET has been working specifically on acid deposition monitoring.

Marking an important milestone for the Network, Participating Countries agreed to start the process of expanding the scope of the Instrument allowing the EANET to work on wider air quality and air pollution issues in the near future.

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Find out more about the IG22 by reading the Report of the Session and discover the pictures of the IG22 Meeting on Flickr.

Photo credits: all rights reserved to EANET.

The EANET Working Group Meetings on Drafting the MTP (2021-2025) and Reviewing the Scope of Instrument

Posted on by Aurélia Lemoine

WG1 Group Photo 29 June 2020

7 July 2020 – Bangkok, Thailand

From June 29th to July 2nd 2020, National Focal Points or representatives of the Acid Deposition Monitoring Network in East Asia (EANET) and other international experts met virtually, simultaneously in 13 countries of East Asia, to discuss the future of the Network and reaffirm their common motivation to fight the adverse effects of acid deposition in the Region.

 

The Working Group Meeting on Drafting Medium Term Plan for the EANET (2021-2025), June 29-30 2020

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, EANET’s Working Group Meeting on Drafting Medium Term Plan for the EANET (2021-2025) took place via a virtual platform (see above a collage of most participants’ webcam). During the two-day meeting, over 50 participants from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Lao PDR, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Republic of Korea, Russia, Thailand, Philippines, and Viet Nam joined the EANET’s Secretariat and Network Center to discuss draft versions of the Medium Term Plan for the EANET (2021-2025).

The Opening Remarks, delivered by Dr Dechen Tsering, Regional Director and Representative, United Nations Environment Programme for Asia & the Pacific, emphasized that the global pandemic “COVID-19” has allowed us to reflect and re-assess our actions toward nature and reminds us of the importance of the health of people and the planet. The Welcome Remarks, delivered by Dr Shiro Hatakeyama, Director General, Asia Center for Air Pollution Research, reasserted the importance of the Working Group Meeting to recommend the future direction of the EANET.

During these discussions, gathering mostly government officials from Asian Ministries of the Environment, the EANET considered activities and budget for the next five years. As a conclusion, and given the importance of the task, meeting attendees decided to continue discussions during the Second Session of Working Group Meeting, to be held in October 2020.

 

 

The Working Group Meeting on Reviewing the Scope of Instrument for the EANET, July 1-2 2020

The Working Group Meeting on Reviewing the Scope of Instrument for the EANET also took place via a virtual platform, regrouping a little less than 50 participants, from EANET’s Participating Countries, most of which had also participated in the two previous meeting days.

WG2 Photos 1-2 July 2020
Screenshots from the Working Group Meeting on Reviewing the Scope of Instrument for the EANET, 1-2 July 2020.

The purpose of this meeting was to discuss the objectives and scope of the EANET’s Instrument and the possibility of expanding this scope further.

In addition to the Environmental government officials, several Resource persons joined the meeting, among which a Legal Expert Resource Person, to explain in details the legal options and consequences of how to expand the current scope of Instrument.

As a conclusion, meeting attendees prepared recommendations to be submitted to the next Intergovernmental (IG) Meeting, to be held in November 2020.

 

Meeting Reports for both Working Group Meetings will soon be available on the Resources webpage.

Curious about EANET’s activity? Find out more about the next EANET Meeting dates on the Event’s page and discover the pictures of the Working Group Meetings on Flickr.

 

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