Honorary guests, expert speakers and panelists, and the extended HELCOM family will celebrate tomorrow 5 March the 40th anniversary year of signing of the Helsinki Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area. A session will be streamed at 10–12:30 o’clock (CET+1h). Selected highlights from a special exhibition, showcasing major achievements, photos and many memories from the four decades of environmental collaboration between the nine Baltic Sea countries and the EU, will also be made available in HELCOM website. The Jubilee will be opened by President Tarja Halonen, followed by Minister of the Environment of Finland, Ville Niinistö, Jacqueline Alder from the United Nations Environment Programme, and Helle Pilsgaard, Chair of HELCOM. Three expert presentations will shed some light on the status of the Baltic marine environment and future prospects for its recovery, by Professor Erik Bonsdorff, Åbo Akademi; Bo Gustafsson, Baltic Nest Institute; and Marianne Kettunen from the Institute of European Environmental Policy. As the final part, the stage will be taken over by a panel with a future focus, participated by Chiefs-of-Office of HELCOM, Marine environment protection Commission of the North-East Atlantic (OSPAR), International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES), and the BONUS Baltic Research Programme. The panel will also be joined by the representatives of two HELCOM members: the European Union and the Russian Federation. Note for editors:The Baltic Marine Environment Protection Commission, usually referred to as , is an intergovernmental organisation of the nine Baltic Sea coastal countries and the European Union working to protect the marine environment of the Baltic Sea from all sources of pollution and to ensure safety of navigation in the region. Since 1974, HELCOM has been the governing body of the ‘Convention on the Protection of the Marine Environment of the Baltic Sea Area’, more commonly known as the Helsinki Convention. For more information, please contact:Johanna Laurila Information Secretary HELCOM Tel: +358 40 523 8988 Skype: helcom70 E-mail:
Honorary guests, expert speakers and panelists, and the extended HELCOM family will celebrate tomorrow the 40th anniversary year.
