The strategy will be built around the so-called SCALE initiative: Science, Children, Awareness, Legislation and Evaluation. In order to take advantage of the widest range of expertise, the EU has begun a stakeholder consultation on the strategy aimed at bringing together leading experts in the field from both the EU and accession countries. The ERS attended the first stakeholder meeting in Brussels on July 11, 2003, and hopes to play a leading role in the consultation.
Ten different technical working groups
The Commission is now in the process of setting up a series of Technical Working Groups (TWGs) in 10 different areas, including children’s respiratory health, environment and health indicators, emerging threats and priorities, and research needs.
The task of these TWGs will be to gather the available evidence for a baseline report on the current situation, by the end of 2003. It will also provide assistance in the formulation of a draft EU action plan on environment and health for the period 2004–2010, which should be ready by the end of March 2004. This action plan, if approved by the Member States, will be the EU contribution to a WHO Ministerial Conference on Children’s Health and Environment, which is due to take place in Budapest in June 2004. In addition to the TWGs, the Commission will also be setting up a Consultative Group. This group will be responsible for coordinating the work of the TWGs and drafting the proposed action plan.
Ensuring ERS participation in the TWGs
Given the importance of this initiative to the work of the ERS, an internal Working Group has been established to enable the Society to take part in the consultation process and ensure that the expertise of the Society’s members in the field is made available to the EU Commission and other stakeholders. This Working Group is chaired by Benoit Nemery, Head of the Occupation and Epidemiology Assembly (6); other members include Jorrit Gerritsen, Chair of the Paediatrics Assembly (7), Kai-Håkon Carlsen, Chair of the ERS School, Isabella Annesi-Maesano, Secretary of Assembly 6, Peter Helms, Chair of the Paediatric Respiratory Epidemiology Group (7.6), Erika von Mutius and Thomas Nicolai from Munich, Laurent Nicod, ERS Treasurer, and Giovanni Viegi, former Head of Assembly 6. Members of the group have been nominated to join some of the EU TWGs, as well as the Commission’s Consultative Group. Members of this new ERS Working Group held a telephone conference in late July to discuss membership and the mandate of the Group. The next teleconference will take place at the beginning of September, just before the first meeting of the EU’s Consultative Group in Brussels on September 10, when members of the 10 TWGs are expected to be confirmed. More information on the work of this ERS Working Group dedicated to collaborating with the EU “Environment and Health” strtegy will be available in future issues of the Newsletter.