The Health and Environment Alliance Against Toxics (HEAL-Toxics) has been formed to support and help facilitate effective engagement by public interest nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in global, regional and national efforts to promote chemical safety.

Members

The Pesticide Action Network (PAN)

PAN is an international coalition of citizens groups and individuals who oppose the misuse and overuse of pesticides, and support the reliance on safe and sustainable alternatives. Established in 1982, the PAN international network presently links over 300 groups in 50 countries, and is coordinated through five regional coordinating centers. PAN is a network and no individual can direct or represent the entire coalition. Participants are free to pursue their own projects to further PAN's objectives, and benefit from their access to the collective resources of the network. PAN Asia and the Pacific (PAN AP) is based in Penang, Malaysia.

KALIKASAN-People's Network for the Environment

KALIKASAN is a network of people's organizations (POs), non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and environmental advocates. It aims to address environmental issues but in such a way that primacy is given to the people-especially the grassroots people who constitute the overwhelming majority of the population. All environmental causes shall thus have the people's interest at their core.

Center for Environmental Concerns - Philippines

CEC is a non-governmental organization committed to environmental protection and rehabilitation. Established in 1989, the Center's main objectives are to promote awarenesss, knowledge and use of environmental protection and rehabilitation concepts and technologies, as well as conduct research and develop protection and rehabilitation models.

Health Alliance for Democracy

HEAD is composed of individuals from the health sector who adhere to the principles of the Filipino people's struggle for sovereignty and democracy. HEAD struggles for a society where the State ensures the effective delivery of basic social services especially to the basic masses. It pushes for a quality health care system that is mass-based, scientific, and free from foreign and local monopoly control.

Health Care Without Harm

HCWH is an international coalition of hospitals and health care systems, medical professionals, community groups, health-affected constituencies, labor unions, environmental and environmental health organizations and religious groups. Its mission is to transform the health care industry worldwide, without compromising patient safety or care, so that it is ecologically sustainable and no longer a source of harm to public health and the environment.

Greenpeace Southeast Asia

One of the founding principles of GREENPEACE is to "bear witness"-that is to watch and record environmental destruction. This principle of direct action together with peaceful confrontation, has been the cornerstone of GREENPEACE's campaigns. Greenpeace is already active in many part of Asia. Our work in the region has included stopping hazardous waste imports, opposing radioactive shipments, campaigning against forest destruction, lobbying governments on sustainable energy issues and drawing attention to the dangers of waste incinerations.

Fisherfolk/Youth Against Toxics

Fisherfolk Against Toxics is an organization under Pamalakaya (Pambansang Lakas ng Kilusang Mamamalakaya ng Pilipinas), a nationwide federation of fisherfolk organizations with a total individual membership of 80,000 based in different parts of the Philippines. The fisherfolk sector is composed of fishermen and women in coastal and in-land waters and workers in commercial fishing and aquaculture.

People's Task Force for Bases Clean-up

Born in 1994, PTFBC strongly advocates for the clean-up of former U.S. military facilities in the Philippines. It pioneered in bringing awareness on toxic and hazardous wastes in the country as well as campaigning against its production and dumping by industries and corporations.

Archdiocese of Manila Ecology Desk

The office is the continuation of the environmental advocacy started by Caritas MAnila, the social service and development arm of the Archdiocese since 2000. Archdiocese of Manila Ecology DEsk( AMED) has three main programs. The Eco Waste/Resources management and setting up of the Ecology Desk in the Parishes. Second, the Adopt a Mountain for agro forestation and the Advocacy and Networking. WE are also committed to advocate for the elimination of POPs in the environment. We discourage people from using pesticides and non organic fertilizers.

The Objectives of HEAL-Toxics

1) To provide a common platform for not-for-profit groups and individuals who are working to protect human health and the environment from injury caused by toxic chemicals.

2) To promote public education and awareness-raising activities related to toxic chemicals, and to promote alternative practices and policies to prevent the harm toxic chemicals cause.

3) To support the objectives of existing NGO networks active in the field of chemical safety, to help fill gaps and to help facilitate communication and cooperation between them.

4) To help facilitate information exchange on chemical safety issues and to help communicate the perspectives and experiences of NGOs active in this field to governmental and intergovernmental agencies and fora.

Background and Rationale

In recent years, and in all regions of the world, there has been rapidly growing public awareness about the devastating harm caused by toxic chemicals to human health and the environment. Public interest NGOs and civil society organizations in many countries have played an important role in calling public attention to these problems. These organizations have also already had some significant initial successes in influencing governmental and intergovernmental institutions.

Global examples include influential international NGO interventions into the development of new multilateral environmental agreements such as the Basel Convention on Wastes; the Rotterdam Convention on Prior Informed Consent (PIC); and the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs). NGO have also play an important role in the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety (IFCS) and participate regularly on its leading body, the Forum Standing Committee (FSC). NGOs also have an increased interest in interacting with the relevant divisions of intergovernmental organizations with a role in chemical safety including: the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP); the Food Agriculture Organization (FAO); the World Health Organization (WHO); the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO); the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP); and the Global Environment Facility (GEF).

However, the mechanisms available to enable NGOs to play an effective role in promoting chemical safety have not kept up with the level of public awareness and NGO interest; existing mechanisms have been greatly insufficient to enable appropriate NGO responses to growing opportunities. This is most importantly the case for smaller and mid-sized NGOs in developing countries and countries in transition – the most dynamic new force to have entered this field in the past decade.

Existing mechanisms have not allowed a sufficiently effective level of NGO intervention in global and regional chemical safety activities that have become especially important in influencing emerging chemical safety policies and regimes in the developing world. Existing mechanisms are also still unable to sufficiently enhance global and regional sharing of skills, experiences and information between NGOs active in this field.

The already existing NGOs and NGO networks in this field need enhanced support. HEAL-Toxics has been formed both to promote this enhanced support and also to fill gaps that are not currently being addressed.

HEAL- Toxics INITIAL WORK PLAN

HEAL- Toxics will provide organizational and logistic support to the Southern IPEN Co-Chair in carrying out IPEN and related duties; will provide some initial secretariat functions to support Public Interest NGO involvement in the IFCS and its Forum Standing Committee; and it will pursue other activities in support of HEAL- Toxics objectives.

HEAL-Toxics will seek to raise additional project funds to support work in the following areas:

1) HEAL- Toxics will facilitate NGO efforts relating to reductions and elimination of POPs and other persistent toxic substances in Southeast Asia, East Asia and the Pacific. This will include NGO capacity building; NGO participation in their country National Implementation Plan (NIP) preparations for the Stockholm Convention; Stockholm Convention ratification efforts; awareness-raising, public education and campaigns.

2) Provide to the newly formed Information Exchange Network on Capacity Building for the Sound Management of Chemicals (INFOCAP) an interface with smaller and medium-sized NGOs, people’s organizations (POs), community-based organizations(CBOs), and NGO networks engaged in chemical safety activities.

3) Provide full secretariat functions to support and enhance public interest NGO participation in the activities of the Intergovernmental Forum on Chemical Safety with emphasis on support to smaller and medium-sized NGOs based in developing countries and countries in transition.

 

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