Linking Concepts to Action: INECE 8th Conference to Focus on Successful Strategies for Environmental Compliance and Enforcement

Experts from around the world will convene in Cape Town, South Africa, on 5-11 April 2008, to collaborate on identifying concrete individual and collective actions to advance the global agenda of strengthening environmental compliance and enforcement at all levels of governance.

Past INECE conference participants have recognized the great value of the week-long gathering as an exceptional forum for “collective learning among compliance and enforcement professionals” that generated a “clear picture of what needs to be done to achieve effective enforcement.”

The conferences have provided unparalleled opportunities for networking among practitioners from different regions of the world who would never otherwise have an opportunity to learn from each other or share experiences with their peers.

The 8th Conference will open with two days dedicated to capacity building and networking events focused on priorities for southern and eastern Africa. The subsequent five days will feature action-oriented thematic workshops, distinguished keynote speakers, and networking opportunities for over 150 invited participants, and will include a day for field visits to sites of innovative environmental enforcement initiatives in South Africa.

Thematic Conference tracks include strategic management of environmental compliance and enforcement programs; detecting noncompliance; transboundary compliance and enforcement; biodiversity, ecosystems, and enforcement; climate change and compliance; creating a culture of compliance; and the regulated community’s role in compliance. All interested parties are invited to submit original papers for publication in Volume 1 of the Conference Proceedings. The first deadline for articles is 12 November 2007; please see the INECE Conference page for the full paper guidelines and other information.

As noted by South Africa's Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism (DEAT), "[e]nvironmental compliance and enforcement are becoming high profile issues in South Africa in the context of high economic growth and development, ... the ongoing protection of our biodiversity and protected areas, and the required adaptation for climate change.” Through collaborations with DEAT, the City of Cape Town, the Western Cape Province, th Environmental Law Association of South Africa (ELA), and other local partners, the Conference will seek to respond to specific needs and challenges related to environmental compliance and enforcement in southern Africa.

Please note that conference participation is by invitation only; nominations will be made through the regional compliance and enforcement networks.

En français: L’INECE annonce sa huitième Conférence International portant sur l’application et la conformité environnementale, en Afrique du Sud.

En español: INECE anuncia su octava Conferencia Internacional sobre Aplicación y Cumplimiento Ambiental, a realizarse en Sudáfrica.