Mission

The Green Network of Vojvodina promotes and supports environmental protection and sustainable development on local, regional, national and international level. We also promote tolerance and democracy with the aim of peaceful settlement of conflicts. One of our priorities, apart from the “green activities” is to develop awareness among the peoples of Vojvodina of the need of peaceful coexistence of all the nations, ethnic groups and confessions. In our view the rich and diversified spectrum of nations and confessions in Vojvodina is a prominent civilizational and cultural legacy and merit.

Objectives

The general objectives of the Green Network of Vojvodina, as formulated in the Statute are:

• To promote environmental awareness of the general public, authorities and companies

• To promote information system/ media

• To work on education of young people

• To promote ideas on human and environmental rights

• To promote environmental/clean/renewable technologies

• Networking

Strategy

Our strategy is to work on the possibilities for people (specially young/women) in Vojvodina to have opportunity to change their lives and to accept the ideas of sustainability as a solution of development. Sustainable development/agriculture for Vojvodina means to preserve natural resources/land in good condition for the future generations and to use more traditional way in production (organic gardening, old crafts, renewable energy, segregation of waste, “green tourism”).

In the same time strategy is to make a pressure to the officials to accept proposed reforms and to recognize sustainable agriculture as a priority.

Legal Status

The Green Network of Vojvodina is independent, non-government and non- profit organization. It was registered on September 2001 in accordance with Yugoslav legislation. The registration was on federal level under the federal ministry for justice.

Green Network of Vojvodina was founded as a “green” branch in March 2000 under the umbrella of the Pancevo Peace Movement (PPM).

Since than the number of our members increased with professionals of different kinds (physicians, bachelors of agriculture, engineers, chemists, physicians etc) and that was the main reason of our decision to register Green Network of Vojvodina as independent organization.

We have two levels of decision-making: board and annual assembly.

Board is deciding about main decisions and policy of GNV, but members are welcomed to give suggestions. Annual assembly is the decision body where all members are involved in the main strategy and where the main bodies are elected. Board is consisted of five members. Supervisory board is in charge for financial control. This body has three members, elected at the same time with the board members. Board has four years mandate.

With whom we are working

We are close cooperating with following NGOs from Vojvodina:

• HCIT (Humanitarian Center for Integration and Tolerance), Novi Sad
• TERAS, Subotica
• Center for Multiculturalism, Novi Sad
• Helsinki Committee for Human Rights, Belgrade
• Open Lyceum, Sombor
• Creativ Youth of Novi Sad, Novi Sad
• Pancevo Peace Movement, Pancevo
• Women Assocciation, Novi Knezevac
• ICVA, Belgrade Office
• Green Action, Leskovac
• Urban-in, Novi Pazar
• ARCI , Italian NGO for develpment and culture, branch in Novi Sad

NGOs from the region of CEE & SEE we are cooperating with:

• Green Action, Zagreb, Croatia
• Green Osijek, Osijek, Croatia
• BETA, Sarajevo, Bosnia&Herzegovina
• Umanotera, Ljubljana, Slovenia
• Eco SouthWest, Blagoevgrad, Bulgaria
• PPNEA, Tirana, Albania

GNV is also cooperating with international NGOs:

• WEDO, Women's Environment and Development Organization
• Friends of the Earth

GNV is member of two international network NGOs:

• ANPED, Northern Alliance for Sustainability, Amsterdam, Holland
• WECF, Women of Europe for Common Future, Amsterdam, Holland

Budget recent years

Green Network of Vojvodina is relatively new NGO. After official registration in September 2001 our organization didn’t open bank account for knowing bank problems in Yugoslavia. Proper bank account we opened in March 2002.

All projects we made recent years we did as volunteers.

• In July 2000 with the support of the paper “Vojvodina”, the Network started publishing its own paper (within newspaper "Vojvodina"), entitled the “Green Smile of Vojvodina” (with eight issues). The concept of the paper was to publish monthly on two pages articles dealing with environmental issues in Vojvodina, promote ideas of Vojvodina’s multiethnic and multicultural character, advocate development of civil society, report on the work of non-governmental organizations in Vojvodina and inform on other countries’ experience in the field of ecology and green policy. July 2000 – February 2001, Quakers from Huddersfield, UK supported Another project (2001) “ Usable objects distinctive for seven ethnic groups in Vojvodina – Serbs, Hungarians, Croats, Slovakians, Ukrainians, Romanians, Germans”, 2001, It was supported by Ecumenical Humanitarian Center, Novi Sad

• At 2001 GNV have been starting campaign against GMOs in Vojvodina.,2001 JMG Foundation supported project

• “Starting GMO public debate in Yugoslavia”, April-July 2002, Grassroots Foundation, Germany

• Research and participating ICCP-3 meeting, Grassroots Foundation, March-May 2002, Germany

• “Joint NGO Efforts for GMO-Free Supermarket Shelves in SEE”, joint project GNV,Yugoslavia, Green Action, Croatia, Umanotera, Slovenia, awarded project by REC, Hungary,September02-Octobar03, Green Network of Vojvodina project leader

• “NGOs for POPs control in the region of SEE”, joint project with Green Osijek, Croatia, written in August, 2002, not funded yet

• “Center for Organic Agriculture”

Project for alternative education in organic food production, as a part of sustainable development, for young experts and producers, as well as for the citizens from Novi Sad. Project is not funded yet.

• “Sustainable agriculture and Rural Development in Vojvodina”

Project have been started in January 2003 and will continued in 2004. Funded by Rockefeller Brothers Fund, New York

We do not have membership fee.