From Shared Risks to Joint Action: GPPAC Eastern Europe Network Meeting in Romania

On 11–14 October, Romania hosted a meeting of the Eastern Europe Regional Network of GPPAC — the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict. Our Foundation helped organise the meeting in its role as the network’s coordinating organisation.

GPPAC brings together civil society organisations working on armed conflict prevention, peacebuilding, dialogue, and cooperation between countries and communities.

The meeting had a practical focus: to assess developments across the region, identify shared risks and priorities, and define themes for future joint projects and partnerships.

Nataliia Nechaieva-Yuriichuk, a member of the Public Resources and Initiatives Charity Foundation and Regional Coordinator of the GPPAC Eastern Europe Network, presented the network’s achievements and contributed to defining its future priorities and areas of cooperation.

The programme also included a roundtable entitled “The Environmental Cost of War: Regional Risks for Ukraine, Moldova and Romania.”

Its purpose was to highlight that the environmental consequences of war extend beyond national borders. The discussion focused on the Dniester River and the Black Sea, shared risks to water resources and ecosystems, and how cooperation on environmental challenges can help build trust, strengthen dialogue and prevent new conflicts in the region.

The roundtable was opened by GPPAC Executive Director Z Local Mowlazada. Serhii Hakman, representing our Foundation, moderated the discussion, while Nataliia Nechaieva-Yuriichuk delivered the opening presentation. Experts from Ukraine, Moldova and Romania joined the discussion:

• Dorin Popescu, President of the Black Sea House Association, Romania;
• Iordanca-Rodica Iordanov, PhD, Executive Director of EcoContact / the Aarhus Centre for Environmental Information and Consultation, and former Minister of Environment of the Republic of Moldova;
• Zinovii Broide, Director of the State Scientific and Technical Centre “Ecoresource,” PhD in Technical Sciences, and Adviser to the Head of the Chernivtsi Regional Military Administration;
• Ilia Trombitsky, Executive Director of the Eco-TIRAS International Association of River Keepers, Republic of Moldova;
• Dr Marian Zidaru, Associate Professor and Researcher at the Black Sea House Association, Constanța, Romania.

As a practical outcome, the findings will contribute to the CLIMPSE analytical study on the environmental consequences of war and inform the network’s future joint initiatives.

For us, participation in GPPAC means drawing on partnerships, expertise and joint action to respond to the consequences of war while also working to reduce the risks of new conflicts in the region.