innen.qxd 17.11.04 10:25 Seite 1 This book has been edited and sponsored by... Die Grüne Bildungswerkstatt (Austrian Green Foundation) Neubaugasse 8 with support from A-1070 Vienna, Austria Heinrich Böll Stiftung phone: +43-1/526 91 11 Rosenthaler Str. 40/41 E-Mail: [email protected] D-10178 Berlin, Germany Web: http://www.gbw.at phone: +49-30/285 34-0 E-Mail: [email protected] Web: http://www.boell.de Contact addresses of the organizers of the Vienna meeting: European Green Party/EFGP rue Wiertz 31 B-1050 Brussels, Belgium phone: +32-2/284 66 77 E-Mail: [email protected] Web: http://www.europeangreens.org/ Grüner Klub im Rathaus Rathaus The Greens/European A-1082 Vienna, Austria Free Alliance in the EP phone: +43-1/4000 81832 European Parliament E-Mail: [email protected] rue Wiertz [email protected] B-1047 Brussels, Belgium Web: http://wien.gruene.at phone: +32-2/284 30 44 E-Mail: [email protected] Web: http://www.greens-efa.org Editorial office, translation, photos: Christine Côte, Norbert Fischer, Daniela Graf, Gerhard Jordan, Andrew Kilpatrick, Gerhard Ladstätter, Monika Vana, Barbara and Marco Vanek. Layout: Otto Fritsch, Printed by: Donau Forum, A-1120 Vienna. Vienna, 2004 innen.qxd 17.11.04 10:25 Seite 2 2nd European Meeting of Green Local Councillors "Greening the Cities in the European Union" Vienna, December 5th - 7th, 2003 TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword by Monika Vana 4-5 (City councillor, Die Grünen Vienna, Deputy chair of the Green Group) Welcome addresses by Eva Glawischnig (MP, Die Grünen Austria), 6-10 Arnold Cassola (Secretary General of EFGP), Monika Vana (Die Grünen Vienna) and Monica Frassoni (MEP, co-chair of the Greens/EFA Group) Presentation of the panel "Greens govern European Cities" 11 Participants of the Vienna meeting. by Maria Vassilakou (city government member without portfolio in Vienna from 2001-2004, chairwoman of the Green Group in the citycouncil of Vienna since then) Panel on "The future of public services - a challenge to Greens" Speech by Daniel Brélaz (Mayor of Lausanne, Switzerland) 12-14 Speech by Jeremy Smith (Secretary-General of the Council of 49-55 Speech by Yves Contassot (Deputy Mayor of Paris, France) 15-17 European Municipalities and Regions CEMR) Speech by Imma Mayol i Beltrán 18-20 (MEP, London/UK (Deputy Mayoress of Barcelona, Catalonia/Spain) Speech by Jean Lambert ) 56-61 Speech by Albert Steinhauser (Chairperson of Die Grünen Vienna) 62-65 Speech by János Kittl (city government member in Pécs, Hungary) 21-24 Speech by Gianluca Borghi 66-68 Speech by John Gormley (MP and ex-Mayor of Dublin, Ireland) 25-28 (Member of the Regional Government of Emilia Romagna, Italy) Photos of Workshops of December 6th, 2003 29-30 Panel on "Further networking" Presentation of the panel "Cities and EU - shaping Europe 31 Speech by Eva Lichtenberger (MP until 2004, 69-72 together" by Monika Vana since then MEP, Die Grünen Austria) on "The Alpine network" Speech by Angela Spizig (Deputy Mayoress of Cologne, Germany) 32-34 Speech by Mike Feinstein 73-77 (Mayor of Santa Monica, California/USA from 2000-2002, since then Speech by Mats Pertoft (Deputy Mayor of Södertälje, Sweden) 35-36 city councillor) on "The network of the American Greens" Speech by Philippe Debry 37-38 Reports from Workshops 78-88 (Deputy Mayor of Anderlecht near Brussels, Belgium) The "Greening the cities" resolution of Rome 89-90 Speech by Jana Drápalová 39-40 (February 22nd, 2004) (City councillor and District Mayoress in Brno/Czech Republic) The 1st European Meeting of Green Local Councillors in 1996 91-92 Speech by Johannes Voggenhuber (MEP, Die Grünen Austria) 41-44 List of Participants of the 2nd European Meeting 93-100 Speech by Daniel Cohn-Bendit (MEP, co-chair of the Greens/EFA Group) 45-48 of Green Local Councillors, with e-Mail addresses 2 3 innen.qxd 17.11.04 10:25 Seite 4 GREENING THE CITIES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION GREENING THE CITIES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION 2nd European Meeting of Green Local Councillors, Vienna, December 2003 2nd European Meeting of Green Local Councillors, Vienna, December 2003 Vienna - starting point for local green networking them several mayors, deputy may- stances in which the realization of ors, members of executive bodies Green ideas and projects in the in cities, and local councillors. cities can be achieved were also Monika Vana They came from cities with mil- examined. City councillor and deputy chairperson of the Green Group in Vienna: lions of inhabitants and capitals The Vienna meeting not only led as well as small villages. There to effective networking among were delegations from 31 coun- the several thousand Green local The 2nd European Meeting of ment and the European Federa- tries altogether. politicians in Europe's cities and Green Local Councillors has been tion of Green Parties (EFGP). municipalities, but also helped to organized by the Viennese Greens Around 300 participants both The goal of the meeting was a find a consensus on some con- together with the Greens/EFA from Western and Eastern Europe pan-European exchange of ideas tents of local politics. This Group in the European Parlia- gathered at the meeting, among and experience on successes and resulted in a resolution that I challenges of green local politics tabled at the founding congress in the context of EU enlargement of the European Green Party in and the constitutional process. Rome and that was adopted on 22nd February, 2004 (see page The Greens are already members 89/90). of governments in several coun- tries in Europe. European local The local level is the basis on policy is more and more influen- which the strength of the Greens ced by Green ideas and concepts. relies. The meeting in Vienna rein- The conference of the Green local forced and showed the significan- councillors just a few months ce of the political work on this before the EU enlargement was an level. The 3rd Meeting of Europe- opportunity to show various an Green Local Councillors is common areas of interest between going to take place in 2006, pro- politics at the EU level and local bably in Barcelona. politics. The meeting focused on require- ments applying to a Green Euro- pean policy viewed from the local and municipal level, but also on crucial questions like the future of public services, global neo-libera- Further information: lism and challenges for a Green http://www.wien.gruene.at/con- Monika Vana labour-market policy. The circum- ference03/index.html 4 5 innen.qxd 17.11.04 10:25 Seite 6 GREENING THE CITIES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION GREENING THE CITIES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION 2nd European Meeting of Green Local Councillors, Vienna, December 2003 2nd European Meeting of Green Local Councillors, Vienna, December 2003 Eva Glawischnig enthusiasm into organizing the Vana, Gerhard Jordan, Heike MP of Die Grünen Austria and deputy chairperson of the Green Group: Meeting and making it a success; Warmuth and Ulrike Eckerstorfer, on behalf of us all I'd like to thank most warmly. the team responsible, Monika Well done! There's always plenty of variety European level and globally. Pro- here in the Austria Center, but tecting the environment, an orien- Arnold Cassola today sets a new record - and I'm tation towards ecological sustaina- Secretary General of the EFGP (European Federation of Green Parties): delighted to have the privilege of bility, solidarity, a radical orienta- opening this Meeting. Originally I tion towards democracy and peace intended to say one sentence in - those are the values that bring us On behalf of the Organization threshold of enlarging the Europe- each language represented among together on a visionary level; but Committee of the European an Union. In a few months' time the participants today; but as we are also in touch in our every- Greens I cordially welcome you to hundreds of Green members of those taking part come from day work in the community, our Meeting. It isn't our first visit local councils in four neighbou- Albania, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croa- implementing, getting on with to Vienna; the Green Local Coun- ring states, Hungary, the Czech tia, the Czech Republic, Den- things, shaping - not just vision, cil Members are meeting here for Republic, Slovakia and Slovenia, mark, Estonia, Finland, France, but hands-on activity as well. the second time. I well recall our together with the three Baltic sta- Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, first meeting in June 1996, in con- tes and Poland, plus a handful Latvia, Lithuania, Luxemburg, It's most encouraging that we junction with the first Congress of from Malta and Cyprus, will join Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, have a number of politicians - the European Green Parties. A lot the thousands of Green members Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slo- men and women - among us today of water has flowed under the of local councils in the European venia, Spain, Sweden, Switzer- who have already achieved great bridge since then. Seven years have Union. Nor do we wish to forget land, Turkey, the Ukraine, the things; the cities have always been gone by, and while I am no longer the other Green members of local United Kingdom, the USA and the cradle of green politics, and a councillor in Malta as I was then, councils in the Ukraine and other Austria, a good thirty languages perhaps I may mention a local while we have all aged seven years regions outside the EU. would have been involved, which success of the Greens' in Austria: and my hair has got thin, the would have held us up rather.