The Information Specialists in the two divisions will respond to information requests from all sectors of society. The potential constituents include NGOs; national, regional and local governments; academia; and the business community. The information specialists will use the NREC's library and databases as well as access global electronic networks.
The NREC will establish an electronic communication system (ECS) that links the Head Office with the National Offices and interested constituents. Establishing and maintaining electronic networks is a crucial tool for fostering regional cooperation and building NGOs' capacities. The system would provide access to the NREC's computer-based resources, access to Internet and other networks, an electronic bulletin board for local country networking, and an e-mail connection with the National Offices. The ECS will have the potential to expand to a separate service within the framework of the Information Exchange.
The Information Exchange should be delivered from the Head Office, since this service will be one of the cohesive mechanisms that ties the offices together and fosters regional cooperation. There needs to be two Information Specialists - a librarian and a database operator.
Many of the constituents, particularly the NGOs, do not have the communication equipment to access reliable environmental information. Even if they have the equipment, many people do not know where the databases are and how to access the specific information needed so as to avoid information overload. The Information Specialist would work with the requester to tailor the request so the information is in a practical and usable form. The librarian will be the Information Specialist with responsibility for the Environmental Information division and respond to questions. The librarian must have excellent computer skills.
This service does not envision developing new databases. However, if other information sources, such as those listed as potential partners, do not have a database with frequently requested information, a NREC could consider creating such a database.
While the information specialists will respond to requests for all types of environmental information, they will ensure they can provide information in the seven categories listed below. The needs analysis indicated a strong demand for such information.
In addition to providing general environmental information, this division would also provide information on education and training programs, funding sources and upcoming events. REC-Budapest reports that in the area of general environmental information, it receives considerable requests regarding environmental law.
Establishing the type of education and training programs indicated in the needs analysis would prove prohibitively expensive for a NREC. Moreover, many organizations provide education and training. A NREC would identify these organizations and steer people towards these courses. The library would also have environmental education and training materials.
All the potential constituents indicated a need for increased funding. A NREC would identify potential funders, including private foundations and multilateral and bilateral donors, and provide information on how to prepare proposals for specific funders. In addition, a NREC could inform donors of potential recipients. Finally, the Environmental Information division will maintain an events calendar.
The Head Office will house the main library collection, with the National Offices having more limited collections. The Head Office library would have general environmental reference materials and specific information on the countries of the CIS. Determining the working language for the library is a critical issue. The majority of the environmental literature is in English, but Russian is the most common language in the CIS. The library may decide to adopt both languages. From the outset the library will need to establish a management system where all sources will be key-worded and entered into the system. The Head Office library should have approximately:
The libraries in the National Offices should have approximately:
As a minimum the National Office libraries should have the following:
The libraries should always be collecting reports prepared by CIS governments, donor organizations, academic organizations and institutes. The libraries could seek donations to supplement their collections from multilateral development organizations such as the World Health Organization, United Nations Food and Agricultural Organization, United Nations Development Program, and the United Nations Environmental Program, and various bilateral donor agencies, such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
By providing such information the NREC would help foster communication between NGOs, governments and local communities. In particular, the experiences of NGOs and local communities in CEE would likely prove more relevant to NGOs and local communities in the CIS than the experience of their counterparts in western countries. Moreover, many NGOs in the CIS point out that they have good contacts with NGOs in the US, but poor contact with NGOs in Western Europe and CEE.
Mailing lists and questionnaires will need to be developed for the different databases. The "Main Environmental Organizations" substudy reports can provide baseline information on which the databases can build. The databases would be updated every other year. The databases would be developed on a consistent platform, using relational database management systems.
The questionnaires for the Expert Consultants would request information on the individual's or organization's experience and expertise. While the Expert Consultants database will need to have individuals and organizations with a broad range of experience and expertise, it will target, initially, individuals and organizations which work in the following areas:
When establishing the Regional Contact Database, in addition to contacting the aforementioned organizations, the implementers may also want to contact: Counterpart (R, U, M), British Experts Serving Overseas, International Executive Service Corps (M), Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance (M), American Bar Association Central and East European Law Initiative (R, U, M), United Kingdom Environmental Know How Fund (M).
