Background
European citizens have a right to know more about European policies and take part more actively in their implementation. The E-CLIC project develops a methodology to raise awareness among the general public and young people in particular, helping all European citizens to better understand and assess these policies. The European Landscape Convention (ELC) is taken as an example of a wide-ranging policy, given its significance for the environment and economy of Europe and the contribution all European citizens can make on the protection, management and planning of landscapes.
The preservation of the European landscapes is indeed our shared responsibility! Adopted by the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe in 2001, the European Landscape Convention (ELC), has been ratified by most member states, offering guidelines to policy makers on how to include landscapes in sustainable development and involve European citizens closely in policy decisions.
Aims-Objectives
The main concern of E-CLIC is to change peoples’ perception of EU policies, make them more familiar to the non-professional and encourage people to assess the impact of such policies upon their lives and everyday activities. Moreover, E-CLIC tried innovative methods to involve people in policy making and policy assessment, taking advantage of the power of ICTs and the internet, and focusing on the European Landscape Convention (ELC) as a “pilot case” of European policy with a direct impact on the environment and economy of all human communities.
The objectives of the project were:
- To familiarise people with the concept of landscape and the three basic principles of the ELC (protect, manage, and plan);
- To enhance people’s capacity for being engaged in policy development and implementation decisions;
- To guide people to understand the impact of their actions upon the landscape;
- To promote learning on the ELC at school, university and continuing education levels
- To create a learning methodology and a number of interactive learning tools including a “European Landscape Database of Best Practice”; and a library of ICT resources that may help demonstrate the challenges faced by landscapes;
- To stimulate discussion and peer learning through competitions and conferences seeking to explore in innovative ways landscape aspects with the help of ICT.
How you can get involved:
- Join the E-CLIC Virtual Community in the E-CLIC Facebook page (www.facebook.com/EClic) to discuss, share and network with other people sharing an interest in landscapes.
- Add your landscape example to the existing E-CLIC best practice database, to share your experiences and assist in popularising the ELC.
- View the CLIC national and European competitions at http://e-clic.ning.com/ inviting students, professionals and the general public to propose innovative solutions to face the challenges posed by the ELC. See the entries and winners.
- Participate in the future CLIC competitions and conferences.
- Follow E-CLIC on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Pinterest and stay in touch with the project’s activities.