We have just published the book of Conference Proceedings from the Conference on Sustainable Development in East Timor. The book is titled ‘Sustainable Development and the Environment in East Timor’, and was edited by Russell Anderson and Carolyn Deutsch.
The book is available (English and Indonesian
versions) in PDF and zip format at
http://members.tripod.com/sd_east_timor/
The Conference endorsed the establishment of a Task Force on Sustainable Development in East Timor. We are currently working to establish a Sustainability Unit at the National University of East Timor to convene this project.
One of the roles of the Sustainability Unit will be to develop a Sustainable Development Library for East Timor. If you have any suitable publications that you would like to donate to this sustainable development library, you can send them, to Carrie Deutsch, UNTIL Research Centre, PO Box 344, Dili, East Timor.
If you are posting from Australia, you may wish to post to the Darwin address at the end of this message.
We have also established a discussion list
on sustainable development in East Timor, to provide a forum for discussion,
information sharing and project reporting. We will provide updates
of the progress of the Task Force on Sustainable Development in East Timor
to this list. To subscribe to the discussion list, visit this website;
http://lists.ntu.edu.au/mailman/listinfo/sduet
Kind regards
Carrie Deutsch and Russell
Anderson
Conference on Sustainable
Development in East Timor
Some background information on the conference is included below
Conference on Sustainable Development in East Timor East Timor’s first major conference on Sustainable Development took place over a 7 day period from the 25th to the 31st of January, 2001. It addressed a comprehensive range of sustainable development issues, and resulted in important recommendations to ensure the implementation of sustainable development in East Timor. More than 800 people participated in the conference including people from at least 6 districts, 3 Cabinet Members and 37 international guests. Seventy five percent of participants were East Timorese.
The purpose of the Conference was to highlight the environment and to promote and facilitate dialogue about sustainable development in East Timor, so that principles of sustainable development can be incorporated in future planning.
There were seven overarching recommendations endorsed by the conference. These included the key recommendation for sustainable development to be written into East Timor’s Constitution, and for national development planning to be approached by drafting a National Sustainable Development Strategy. The conference recommendations stressed the need to address some of the acute unsustainable concerns without delay, such as land tenure rights, deforestation of watersheds and uncontrolled fishing in the southern waters of East Timor. To do this, the conference recommended that substantial investment is made to ensure that development is sustainable.
The Conference on Sustainable Development has identified key themes for action, including some points for early action. What is needed over the coming year is development of a workable framework for national sustainable development that is transparent, accountable, inclusive and participatory. This has to be done in a way that reinforces a human rights-based approach and active involvement of both rural and urban people.
The immediate need therefore is to contribute to a strategy on how sustainable development might be incorporated into national development planning and, more generally, within society.
Task Force on Sustainable Development One of the key conference outcomes was the endorsement of the establishment of a Task Force on Sustainable Development. It is proposed that the Task Force is independent and cross sectoral. The Task Force secretariat will be established as a Sustainability Unit within the Research Centre at the National University of Timor Lorosa’e. It is planned that this unit will be ongoing, becoming a National Institute for Sustainable Development, or the Secretariat for the National Sustainable Development Strategy.
The role of the Task Force will be to ensure that the strategies and recommendations of the conference are carried forward, and to assist with strategic planning and policy development. The Task Force will serve to build cross-sectoral dialogue on the implementation of sustainable development in East Timor.
The task force will be able to focus on the issues raised at the Conference, work in rural areas, build on the existing knowledge base through research and educational programs, and contribute to policy planning and implementation through research and consultation. The Task Force will produce educational material to be distributed to urban and rural communities.
A key role of the task force will be to contribute to the development of a National Sustainable Development Strategy. The Task Force will also serve to monitor progress on implementation of sustainable development programs.
The Task Force will work towards East Timor’s participation in Rio+10, the World Summit on Sustainable Development to be held in Johannesburg in September 2002.
Russell Anderson
Conference Coordinator
Email: rander12@scu.edu.au
Assistant Coordinator:
Carrie Deutsch
Email: cdeutsch@metz.une.edu.au
Conference contact:
Postal Address:
Russell Anderson & Carrie
Deutsch
C/- Timor Aid
PO Box 651
Nightcliff
NT
0814
website: http://members.tripod.com/sd_east_timor/
See also:
Bahasa Indonesia:
Jan
25-31 KPB: Pembangunan Berkelanjutan di Timor Lorosa’e
Article added July 27
"Konferensi ini mengusulkan agar definisi
yang sudah diakui dunia internasional tentang pembangunan berkelanjutan
akan dipakai di Timor Lorosa’e, yaitu: “pembangunan yang memenuhi kebutuhan-kebutuhan
generasi sekarang tanpa mengurangi kemampuan generasi yang akan datang
untuk memenuhi kebutuhan-kebutuhan mereka”. Pembangunan berkelanjutan menjawab
keterkaitannya antara lingkungan hidup, ekonomi dan kesejahteraan sosial.
... Kemajuan hanya dapat dicapai apabila ada keberanian untuk mengambil
tindakan. Tindakan-tindakan untuk memulai penerapanpembangunan berkelanjutan
sebaiknya dimulai hari ini, dan sebaiknya tidak ditunda-tunda untuk dilakukan
suatu saat nanti di masa depan." Konferensi
Pembangunan Berkelanjutan di Timor Lorosa'e
Jan
25-31 KPB: REKOMENDASI: Pembangunan Berkelanjutan di Timor Lorosa’e
Article added Aug 3
"Di samping usulan-usulan spesifik yang
muncul di dalam makalah konferensi dan lokakarya, ada tujuh rekomendasi
umum yang disepakati. Rekomendasi ini mewakili titik awal yang penting
untuk memulai perjalanan menuju pembangunan berkelanjutan di Timor Lorosa’e."
Konferensi
Pembangunan Berkelanjutan di Timor Lorosa'e
Jan
25-31 KPB: Dokumen berikut adalah ringkasan hasil-hasil lokakarya
Article added Aug 3
"Hasil-hasil Lokakarya 22lokakaryamengenai
pembangunan berkelanjutan pertama menentukan 4 isu pokok, dan selanjutnya
mencatatbeberapa strategi untuk menangani masalah-masalah tersebut. ...
Dokumen
berikut adalah ringkasan hasil-hasil lokakarya: Pembangunan Ekonomi
secara Berkelanjutan; Pendidikan - di semua tingkat masyarakat; Pemberdayaan
Kemampuan- pada semua tingkat masyarakat; Proses Perencanaan yang Terpadu
dan Transparan; Pengembangan Kebijakan dengan Melibatkan Masyarakat; Sistem
Peraturan, Penegakan dan Hukuman yang Transparan; Pengakuan Struktur Masyarakat
dan Pengetahuan Tradisional." Konferensi
Pembangunan Berkelanjutan di Timor Lorosa'e
English:
Jan
25-30 2001 CSD: Introduction to Conference on Sustainable Development
Article added July 25
" ... the human system is an integral
part of the ecosystem. A society is sustainable only if both the human
condition and the condition of the ecosystem are satisfactory or improving.
If either is unsatisfactory or worsening, the society is unsustainable.
... The livelihoods of East Timorese people
depend on a healthy and productive environment. All people and industries
for example, depend on a healthy water supply. Agriculture, fisheries,
and tourism also depend on the environment. To meet people’s needs now
and for future generations, East Timor’s natural resource base must be
conserved and improved." Mr Jose
Lobato, Timor Aid
Jan
25-31 2001 CSD: Program for Conference on Sustainable Development
Summary up-dated Aug 3
"The 22 workshops on sustainable development
issues first identified 4 priority issues and then listed strategies to
address them. ...
Summary includes: Sustainable Economic
Development; Education -at all levels of society; Capacity Building -at
all levels of society; Transparent and Integrated Planning Process; Clear
Policies -developed in consultation with the community; Transparent System
of Regulations, Enforcement and Penalties; Recognition of Traditional Structures
and Knowledge." Conference
on Sustainable Development in East Timor
Jan
25-31 2001 CSD: Recommendations of Conference
on Sustainable Development Added Aug 3
"In addition to the many specific suggestions
arising from the Conference papers and workshops, seven overarching
recommendations are made. These represent important starting points to
begin the journey towards sustainable development in Timor Lorosa’e." Conference
on Sustainable Development in East Timor
Jan
25-31 2001 CSD: ETTA: The Natural Resources of East Timor
Overview added July 25
"Because East Timor has ruled by other
people for so long, the management of natural resources in this country
has not received serious attention. The result is that today there is widespread
deforestation and there are several species of bird and animals that are
threatened with extinction. ... Thus if we wish to develop a better future
for East Timor, the biophysical environment and natural resources of East
Timor must be given attention so as to avoid further destruction and to
repair environmental damage." Mario N. Nunes, Manger ETTA Forestry Unit
Multilingual: