This US$1 million partnership framework signed today between the Royal Norwegian Embassy and UNDP in China is designed to raise awareness and build knowledge of policy makers and the general public on environmental challenges facing China through strengthening two of UNDP’s ongoing programmes with the State Environmental Protection Administration (SEPA) – the China Environmental Awareness Programme (CEAP) and the EU-China Biodiversity Programme (ECBP).

“Effective implementation of environmental management and conservation programmes depends on education, awareness raising and training in the relevant areas,” said Alessandra Tisot, UNDP Senior Deputy Resident Representative in China while speaking at the ceremony.

“Without an understanding of how to conserve their natural resources, or indeed, why they must do so, few people and communities would be motivated to take actions to curb environment degradation. That’s why Norway’s contribution is very crucial and timely.”

Signed in June with a total fund of $US3.5 million, the CEAP is expected to raise the public’s awareness of the environmental challenges facing China and to convert the knowledge into a change in behavior, attitude and practice towards environmental protection. Under this initiative, a high-profile national and local awareness campaigns will be conducted, targeting the youth, rural and urban residents and communities.

According to Tisot, the campaigns will consist of public service announcements, films, TV shows, documentaries, events/performances as well as goodwill ambassadors to help disseminate information through TV, print, radio, internet and mobile telephones.

The signing marked the continuation of a strong partnership between the Royal Norwegian Embassy and UNDP in the area of energy and environment, having previously collaborated on climate change and Clean Development Mechanism initiatives. Under the CEAP, a portion of the new contributions will lead to a series of public service announcements on the environment which will be disseminated leading upto and during for the 2008 Beijing “Green” Olympics.

On her official visit to China the Norwegian Minister of Environment Ms. Helen Oddveig Bjornoy participated in the signing ceremony, she said that: “Environmental awareness and public participation plays a crucial role in environmental policy and in order to achieve environmental objectives. I am very happy that the good cooperation established between Norway and UNDP in China now also cover this important area.”

Norway’s funding, as part of the ECBP, will also support the process of updating the China Biodiversity Action Plan formulated in 1994 while also promoting awareness raising activities through multi-stakeholder dialogue with the surrounding communities of the project sites.

With a budget of over US$57 million, ECBP represents a significant investment into conserving China’s biodiversity. It will fund on-the-ground “Field Projects” that will test innovative and replicable mechanisms for biodiversity management, policy implementation, and the establishment of wide-ranging partnerships between international, national, and local governmental and non-governmental agencies.

For more information, please contact:
UNDP China: Ms. Zhang Wei, Communications Officer, UNDP in China at (86-10) 8532 0715, or wei.zhang@undp.org

Royal Norwegian Embassy: Ms. Tone Helene Aarvik at (86-10) 6532 2261, or taar@mfa.no

UNDP fosters human development to empower women and men to build better lives in China. As the UN’s development network, UNDP draws on a world of experience to assist China in developing its own solutions to the country’s development challenges. Through partnerships and innovation, UNDP works to achieve the Millennium Development Goals and an equitable Xiao Kang society by reducing poverty, strengthening the rule of law, promoting environmental sustainability, and fighting HIV/AIDS.