GMO Free Europe 2010, Brussels, 16-18 September 2010

It is our great pleasure to invite you to register for the "GMO-Free Europe 2010", the 6th European Conference of GMO-free Regions in Brussels and Ghent, September 16-18.

This autumn will bring key decisions and discussions within the European Union on genetically engineered plants in agriculture. New approvals and new rules as well as strategic decisions on the future introduction of GMOs in agriculture are presently being prepared by the new EU Commission. The GMO-Free movement has continuously expanded, increased and diversified all across Europe and well beyond. In order to continue and to co-ordinate once again our successful work, we call upon all organizations, initiatives and institutions active against GMOs in food and agriculture, to join "GMO-Free
Europe 2010".

On September 16 at our session in the European Parliament we will present our demands to the public and to institutions in Brussels (session begins at 9:30 am). For two days we will then retreat to Ghent for exchanging experiences, ideas and strategies, for discussing the challenges ahead and for preparing joint activities on GMOs as well as related issues. For more detailed information and the program visit the  conference's website.

Please  register as soon as possible as accommodations are limited, and please let us know about your suggestions and priorities so as to accommodate them in our program planning.


CONTACT:
www.gmo-free-regions.org
c/o Save Our Seeds
Marienstr.19-20, 10117 Berlin, Germany
tel +49 30 27590309, fax +49 30 27590312
 info@gmo-free-regions.org

 

 

WANTED: Multi-lingual European Volunteer

More than 260 regions, over 4500 municipalities and other local entities and tens of thousands of farmers and food producers in Europe have declared themselves "GMO-free" expressing their commitment not to allow the use of genetically modified organisms in the agriculture and food in their territories. Since 2005, the movement of GMO-Free Regions in Europe has held an annual meeting.

In preparation for the 6th Conference of the GMO-free Europe/Regions in Brussels and Gent on September 16th-18th, we are looking for multi-lingual European volunteers to help us translate materials, contact grass roots organizations around Europe, and with general organization. Depending on your language abilities, you will be helping the organizers responsible for different countries. The translation work and the contact of participants will be done form your home; the organizational work at the conference venue Vormingscentrum Guislain in Ghent.
Please indicate if you are offering only help with translations or would like to participate and volunteer during the conference.

Responsibilities will include:
•    translation of materials;
•    materials development;
•    outreach to organizations and participants in their native language;
•    interpretation
•    initial email communication with participants;
•    compilation of participant folders and handling registration during the event.

An ideal candidate for this will have a variety of skills, including:
•    Multi-lingual (at least one European language next to English)
•    Translation and interpretation experience;
•    Knowledge of or interest in GMO issues;
•    Excellent communication (both oral and written) and people skills;

We will be happy to welcome you to participate in the GMO-free regions conference in September this year. We can offer you free admission to the conference on all days as well as accommodations. Our aim is to include grass roots movements and youth groups even more than the years before as well to include topics related to the GMO discussion issues.
If you are willing to help us to build a divers and multi-cultural conference this year and would like to be part of this colourful movement, please send your motivation letter by 18th of April to:

Shannon von Scheele: berlin@zs-l.de, +49 30 275 903 09 (for questions)
Stanka Becheva: stanka.becheva@foeeurope.org, +32 2 893 10 25

For more information visit also www.gmo-free-regions.org/gmo-free-conference-2010.html.

The Dutch government is playing an active role to have GMO crops accepted and introduced to Europe. Part of this strategy is the financial and political support for the Round Table on Resposible Soy (RTRS). This platform of mostly industry and big producers has set up a very weak standard that gives GM Roundup Ready soy a 'responsible'label. The vast monocultures of this crop are creating huge problems.

You will find more information in this  newsletter.

Please raise your voice and sign  the petition to the Dutch government.

At the moment more than 6.000 persons have already signed the call to the
Dutch government.

2.200 in German on  www.regenwald.org
1.400 in Spanish on  www.salvalaselva.org
8.00 in English on  www.rainforest-rescue.org
1.600 in Dutch and English on  www.gifsoja.nl and  www.toxicsoy.org

LUCERNE - SWITZERLAND

APRIL 24TH – 25TH, 2009

At the 5th European Conference on GMO-Free Regions - “Food & Democracy”, in Lucerne (Switzerland), 250 representatives from 28 European countries were welcomed by the Speaker of the Swiss National Parliament, the Ministers of Agriculture of Austria, Scotland and the Czech Republic, as well as the President of Swiss Farmers.

At the end of 2 days of plenary sessions and workshops, the participants called upon the member states of the European Union to rethink their legislation and policy on the use of genetically
engineered organisms in agriculture.

For pictures, documentation and final statement visit the Conference  website

ISIS  Press Release on the Conference

On January 21st 2009 the European Commission announced that it will propose to the member states the approval of two new varieties of GM maize for cultivation . The genetically modified maize varieties BT11 (Syngenta) and 1507 (Dupont/Pioneer) would be the first GM maize varieties to be approved for cultivation within the European Union since 1998.

A campaign was set up to oppose the approval of these crops. Please check the "Stop the Crop" informations on  FoEE and  GMO-free regions websites and participate in the actions.

PSx2 is a project that explores the participatory role of civil society organisations (CSOs) in new scientific and technological developments, with particular reference to experiences in the development of agricultural biotechnology (GM plants, food and feeds). The issue of novel biotechnologies is not only an expanding area of scientific research, but also provides a very important area for social experimentation in more active citizenship and a deeper involvement of the lay public in European research activities. Five civil society organisations and four scientific institutions worked together in this project funded by the DG research of the European Commission.<o:p></o:p>

The overall objective is to increase the social relevance of scientific research through the promotion of public participation in European research activities. It is hoped that both the project process and its outcomes can be used to encourage dialogue and constructive engagement between civil society organisations and scientific research institutions.

The final report of the project is now available in 6 languages.  Click here to access the project website.

Powerpoint  presentation of the project results.

At the occasion of the Conference of the Parties to the Rio Convention on Biological Diversity a range of worldwide NGOs, along with GENET, organised a global conference on the future of food and agriculture in Bonn.

A global movement from different directions came together for the common cause of defending diversity against destructive and threatening tendencies in agriculture, rural development and food production and to celebrate the natural and cultural diversity of life in food and agriculture.

More than 700 participants from 100 nations gathered for four days during the UN-Convention on Biodiversity and the Biosafety Protocol negotiations. They discussed how farmers, consumers, food producers and their communities can cooperate. 6.000 joined a demonstration for local diversity and against genetic engineering in agriculture and 15.000 gathered on a festival of diversity.

For more information about this successful event and to read the Planet Diversity Manifesto, visit the Congress' website.