For the Rotterdam Convention, public awareness and outreach activities are focused on the ‘Right to Know’, a legal principle that supports right of individuals to know about the risks to human health and the environment from exposure to certain hazardous chemicals.
Public awareness and outreach activities conducted by the Secretariat support the need for information exchange between Parties of the Convention, which is the building block of the Prior Informed Consent Procedure (PIC procedure) of the Convention, reflected, in particular, in articles 5, 6, 10, 11, 12 and 13 of the Convention.
Additional information about chemicals listed under the Convention can be found on this website under the section on Chemicals.
Partnerships
In addition to collaborating with the Secretariats of the Basel and Stockholm Conventions, the Secretariat also conducts its public awareness activities in liaison with partner organizations such as:
- WHO (occupational health and exposure)
- UNITAR (training on chemicals management)
- ILO (occupational health, hazardous work)
- IOMC (management of industrial chemicals)
- Regional offices and centers
Information materials
Since 2004, the Secretariat has developed a variety of comprehensive information materials intended to support stakeholders in the various aspects of the implementation of the Convention as well as in the broader area of chemical management at the national level. Electronic versions of these materials can be found on the Convention’s website under the section: Resource Kit / Publications.
Safe Planet Campaign
Safe Planet is an innovative mechanism for public awareness and outreach of the Rotterdam, Basel and Stockholm Conventions. It involves collaboration with external partners to promote the objectives of the three conventions. More information on the safe Planet campaign can be found here.