Commission on Ed ucation and Communication (CEC) IUCN Nepal

The Commission on Education and Communication, CEC, is one of the six Commissions on which IUCN draws expertise to fulfil its mission. CEC connects communication and education professionals for knowledge-sharing, learning and strategic advice. The Commission is a global, voluntary membership network with three working groups:

CEC is led by a Steering Committee and a Chair elected at the quadrennial IUCN World Conservation Congress, at which the Commission also receives its mandate.

CEC IUCN Nepal comprises of 17 members namely Mrs. Arzu Deuba, Mr. Astaman Kisee Maharjan, President of YAEF, Mr. Deepak Gajurel, member of NE FEJ, Mr. Hum Bahadur Gurung, Mr. Kedar Govinda Amatya of Department of Plant Resources, Mr. Mangal Man Shakya, Chairman of WWG, Mr. Prem Karmacharya of Sharda Secondary School, Dr. Sharda Devi Maharjan Faculty of education of Tribhuwan University, Ms. Sunita Malakar of National Center for Educational Development, Mr. Tirtha Koirala, Chief Producer of Kantipur Television, Mr. Ukesh Raj Bhuju, Director of Nepal Nature Dot Com Dr. Yagya Bahadur Karki, Dr. Madhav Bahadur Karki, Deputy Director General of ICIMOD, Rachana Shah, Conservation Education Officer, Nepal Trust For Nature Conservation, Geeta Shrestha, Executive chair person, Nature Nepal Action for Utility Resource and Education, Mr. Narayan Kaji Shrestha advisor of WATCH and Mr. Bhakta Lal Upadhaya ,chairperson of APEC.

CEC priorities in Nepal are to work with the convention particularly in advocacy for communication, education, participation and awareness (CEPA) and Education for sustainable development (ESD). It also works with IUCN programs, members and commission to improve participatory approaches to empower groups and
institutions to play their roles in conservation, sustainable and capacity development. It also supports IUCN to tailor its knowledge and experiences to develop leadership for sustainable development and aids in developing capacity for educating community and also urges IUCN in engaging and empowering people to change towards sustainability. It plans to move forward by developing a joint proposal on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) linking environmental education with new curriculum development and advocating and providing access to good practice, research and innovation. It further aims to promote strategic communication through training courses, practical tool development, publications, expert advice and advocacy efforts that influence practice ,policy and governance in Nepal .It also aims to integrate education and communication aspects into national plans and policies of Nepal.

Frits Hesselink, Prabha Budhathoki & Dr. Arzu R Dewba

Dr. Arzu Deuba was elected as the focal point of the CEC IUCN Nepal with the role to coordinate the CEC during the meeting held at 17th October '2007. During the same meeting Dr. Maharjan was elected to lead the Environment Education sub-committee, to which Pr. Amatya and Mr. Karmacharya volunteered to become members. Mr. Mangal Shakya was elected to the lead communication, public information and awareness creation subcommittee to which Ms. Shrestha and Ms. Shah volunteered to become members while Dr. Karki was elected to become Advisor due to his experience and seniority. It was also decided that Mr. Shakya and Dr. Karki would take the lead for preparing two papers to be send to 2008 IUCN Congress in Barcelona based on real projects on behalf of CEC IUCN Nepal.

During the meeting, CEC IUCN Nepal members also decided on some of the priority areas in Nepal which it needs to focus which included supporting Environment Journalism School, revising environment educational curriculum in Nepal at all levels, ensuring that large infrastructure projects in Nepal meet all environmental standards, initiating a national communication programme with children and youth ,identifying, designing and implementing public information programmes over media on environmental issues and health hazards, eliminating the use and/or promoting wise-use of plastic bags within Nepal’s National Zoo Area and finally writing papers for presentation at Barcelona based on success stories of IUCN members and partners in Nepal.

According to the priority areas to focus, the members also proposed few activities to be done under CEC IUCN Nepal in the future which included establishment and launch of Environmental Journalism School, organizing two day National Workshop on Conflict and Conservation, Monthly Interaction program on Burning Environmental Issues, a national workshop on biodiversity and women issues and a Campaign on health hazards and environmental awareness. Along with this the CEC also decided to initiate public education campaigns on important issues such as the hazards of living under/near high transmission lines; sanitation; conservation of historical heritage sites in Janakpur; Kathmandu’s roads, increase in vehicles and the carrying capacity of roads; sound pollution, etc.

Another meeting of CEC IUCN Nepal was held on 29 November 2007 in Hotel Ambassador, Kathmandu, Nepal between IUCN CR, CEC Nepal members and Mr. Frits Hesselink, Former Chairperson of IUCN. Mr. Frits during the occasion shared key areas of his work with IUCN CEC at the global level and briefly highlighted the CEPA toolkit, its formation process, its utility and the working of the CEC at the IUCN Secretariat.

Based on inputs from Mr. Frits the CEC IUCN Nepal members discussed on prioritizing some key areas for their work in Nepal which included (a) Establishing a centre for excellence and environmental journalism school; (b) working on wetlands using CEPA toolkit; (c) highlighting the issue of conflict and conservation by advocacy with political parties on all sides; (d) initiating environmental activism for environmental leadership and resolution of issues; (e) working towards presentation of best practices from Nepal for Barcelona; (f) bringing international knowledge to Nepal’s conservation efforts; (g) mapping Nepal programmes in collaboration with IUCN’s Secretariat in Nepal to further IUCN mission. During the same meeting it was also decided that CEC IUCNN epal would organize a secretariat and that secretariat would be located within the WWG office at Jwagal, Lalitpur.