The first and the main project is the Environmental Public Advocacy Center organized by Ecopravo-Lviv together with ABA/CEELI in 1994 and funded by the US Agency for International Development (USAID). It was the first EPAC. After two years of its successful activity new EPACs were opened in Kharkiv (1996), Yerevan (1997) and in Kiev (1997). Four EPACs are operating now in NIS region, and they are occupied with the similar activity and services: consultations, cases and litigation, seminars and training programs, clinical programs, law drafting, networking in the sphere of environmental law, data base and library keeping and information sharing.
Several workshops and trainings on Legal Tools in the Environmental NGO activity were held in 1995-1996 under Milieukontakt Oost-Europa (The Netherlands) grant, training for environmental facilitators (with Eurasia Foundation financial support).
Empowerment of Public Interest Environmental Advocates of Ukraine is a joint project with the US office of Environmental Law Alliance Worldwide (E-LAW). E-LAW provides an access to the expertise, knowledge, as well as to legal and scientific information of advocates from over 56 countries of the world connected through the E-LAW global network. This project was financed by ARD/Checchi Joint Venture through the Rule of Law Consortium grant.
The International Conference in Legal Regulation of Public Participation in Environmental Protection was organized together with ABA/CEELI, Environmental Law Institute (US) and "Ecopravo" partner organizations from Kiev and Kharkiv with the financial support of ISAR. The Conference took place in Guta (Ukraine) in June, 1995 and hosted environmental lawyers from 8 countries. At the Conference they decided to hold workshops on the annual basis. The second Conference was held in June, 1996 in Matrahaza (Hungary), the third one - in Chisinau (Moldova), and the fourth one - in Wroclaw (Poland). The number of participants has reached the number of 20 countries and 60 participants. As a result, the strong network and the Association of public interest environmental lawyers in NIS/CEE region have been created. We are planning to hold the fifth Guta Conference in June, 1999 in Yaremcha (Ukraine).
In 1997-1998 Charitable Foundation Ecopravo-Lviv coordinated the project "Road to Aarhus". We have studied the legislation and practice tendencies of public participation in environmental decision-making in five Newly Independent States. In cooperation with partner organizations - Regional Environmental Center and European Environmental Bureau, who conducted a similar research in Eastern, Central and Western Europe, the results were published in the series of books "Doors to Democracy" both in English and Russian.
The representatives of Ecopravo-Lviv organized a Round table discussion and took part in the Open Parliamentary Hearings, held by the Environmental Policy Committee of the Supreme Council (Verkhovna Rada) of Ukraine and TACIS. The draft Convention on access to information, public participation in environmental decision-making and access to justice on environmental matters was discussed there. Later on the representatives of Ecopravo-Lviv took part in the EcoForum and Pan-European Environmental Ministerial Conference "Environment for Europe" in Aarhus.
Together with our colleagues from Kiev and Kharkov EcoPravo, we have organized and held three regional workshops devoted to the public opinion forming for ratification of Aarhus Convention. The results of the workshops were presented at the Open Parliamentary Hearings devoted to the ratification and implementation of the Convention. The Hearings were organized by the Environmental Policy Committee of the Supreme Council (Verkhovna Rada) of Ukraine and TACIS Environmental Awareness Raising Program.
In cooperation with Kiev NGO MAMA-86 and ECOPRAVO network we have held a number of regional seminars devoted to public discussion of the NEHAP (National Environmental and Health Action Plan of Ukraine). The results of those discussions were presented to the Environmental Policy Committee as a part of the preparation process for the III Pan-European Ministerial Conference "Environment and Health" that will take place in London in June 1999.
The representatives of Ecopravo-Lviv participated in Soesterberg Forum and prepared the papers for the Conference in London and for the Healthy Planet Forum.
The West New Independent States project is a new initiative to erase language barriers and strengthen the worldwide community of public interest advocates fighting for a greener future. Use the Internet to access and share environmental information. Support from the U.S. Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs is now helping E-Law reach out to advocates in Ukraine, Belarus and Moldova, in languages they can understand. Local experts are translating e-mail communication to and from five languages: Ukrainian, Moldovan-Romanian, Belarussian, Russian and English. Leading the project is Svitlana Kravchenko, President of Ecopravo-Lviv, joined by Elena Laevskaya, President of Ecopravo-Minsk in Belarus; E-LAW co-founder John Bonine, professor at the university of Oregon School of Law and Director of the University of Oregon-Lviv Partnership; and E-LAW U.S. Staff Scientist Mark Chernaik.
