Background
Within the framework of the development of international cooperation of IENE, a global approach to environmentally friendly linear infrastructure started during the IENE 2014 International Conference in Malmö, Sweden.
With the cooperation with WWF and the support of Federal Ministry for Transport, Innovation and Technology of Austria and the Swedish Transport Administration, a special project was implemented in 2015 for the development of a trans-border transportation project in Myanmar and Thailand . The presentation of the project at the ICOET 2015 Conference in Raleigh, USA gave the starting point for the idea to develop international guidelines and best practices for environmentally friendly linear infrastructure. The basic partner’s team also included ANET (the Australasian Network for Ecology and Transportation).
The road ahead
- For the implementation of IGELI, in a first phase, an international dialogue completed in several meetings and workshops in a global level between 2016 and 2018. The IENE 2016 International Conference, Lyon, France, September 2016
- The IUCN 2016 World Conservation Congress, Hawaii, USA, September 2016
- The ICOET 2017 International Conference, Salt Lake City, USA, May 2017
- The International Forum on Sustainable Infrastructure, Hanoi, Vietnam, May 2017,
- The International Workshop on Sustainable Harmonization of Green with Grey Infrastructure in South Eastern Europe, Faget, Romania, October 2017
- The TransGreen Interreg Danube-Carpathian Project Conference, Bratislava, Slovakia, September 2018
- The IENE 2018 International Conference, Eindhoven, the Netherlands, September 2018
At the end of the IGELI first phase a loose coalition of colleagues and organizations from all over the world shaped (IENE, ICOET, ANET, IUCN, WWF including the 1st African Conference on Linear Infrastructure and Ecology – ACLIE in March 2019) working on International Guidance for Ecologically-adapted Linear Infrastructure.
The first phase of IGELI finalized with the completion of the Report “Towards developing sustainable Linear Transportation Infrastructure globally. Recommendations for priorities of international action”. The recommendations presented in COP 14 of CBD (Sharm El Sheih, Egypt, November2018) and the report sent to the CBD Secretariat.
At a second phase of IGELI, as more concrete framework of needs shaped for the development of the guidelines project with the development of an International Strategy for Sustainable Transport and other Linear Infrastructure as discussed in two international conferences:
- At the “Sustainable Infrastructure Day” side event in the framework of the COP 14 CBD, Sharm El Sheih, Egypt, November2018
- At an IGELI workshop in ACLIE, Kruger National Park, South Africa, March 2019.
- After ACLIE 2019 an international working group established coordinated by IENE which moves towards the CBD 2020 COP 15 in Beijing working on the development of an international strategy to engage different stakeholders on mainstreaming biodiversity on sustainable development of Linear Infrastructure by integrating the environmental, social and economic components.
The IGELI project:
- Is relevant to anyone involved in planning, designing, constructing, funding, approving, and managing linear infrastructure from government, private industry, international development banks and other investors, conservation groups, and research institutions.
- Seeks international feedback on what would make the guidelines realistic and practical in a local context, thereby ensuring that the guidelines will ultimately meet their needs.
- Seeks opportunities for collaborations from partner organisations and sponsors.
More information:
For any further information please contact the project leader Lazaros Georgiadis, or the IENE Secretariat.
