Brussels, June 20, 2017 – More than 250 non-government organisations from across Europe have today released an alternative vision for a more democratic, just and sustainable Europe. [1]

Intended to influence the debate on the future direction of Europe, this alternative vision is endorsed by organisations representing a multitude of public interest issues, including labour rights, culture, development, environment, health, women’s rights, youth, and anti-discrimination groups.

Accompanied by a colourful social programme, the first African Landscape of the Year will be officially inaugurated in January 2018. At the beginning of this month, Mamadou Mbodji, President of the African Naturefriends Network, and Ingeborg Pint, NFI consultant for Africa, travelled the region to coordinate the activities planned for the years 2018 and 2019 with locals.

Every two or three years since 1989 Naturefriends International (NFI) has proclaimed transfrontier and ecologically valuable and vulnerable regions as Landscapes of the Year.
The aim of the project is to organise a wide range of activities and encounters in the respective region. In cooperation with the population and the stakeholders (politicians, authorities, NGOs, etc.), the Naturefriends elaborate concepts for sustainable development and work on strategies for the future.

On 13 May 2017, Urs Wüthrich-Pelloli took office as president of Naturefriends Switzerland. The education policy-maker and former member of the cantonal government has big plans for his time as president. In our conversation, Urs talks about the reasons for his involvement with Naturefriends and his ideas for the future of the organisation.

With the decision to implement the first African Landscape of the Year in Senegal and Gambia, the Annual Conference took an important first step. The newly developing network of Naturfriends organisations in Africa has turned into a vital part of our movement and makes values such as solidarity and global justice visible through partnership-based projects.

 According to the motto „Hand in Hand with Africa“, the first African Landscape of the Year shall initiate important local activities which will be accompanied by activities in Europe to show solidarity.

The official opening event will take place in the beginning of 2018 and European Naturefriends will be able to take part through a Naturefriends holiday organised by NFI.