What is a good model for the sustainable development of a city?
This is what the environmental authorities would like to know.
In collaboration with other ministries and five cities, the Ministry
of Environment initiated an Environmental City Project´ in
1993. In the course of seven years, models were to be developed
for environmentally friendly cities. Priority has been given to
six aims
• to coordinate land-use and transport planning
• to refurbish the city centre as a meeting place and centre for trade, business and culture
• to help local environments to flourish again by providing good residential areas and a local service that makes everyday life easier and gives children and elderly people a safe and positive environment
• to preserve and protect natural areas, water environments and green spaces for recreation and biological diversity
• to dispose of waste in such a way that as much as possible is from households, service institutions and business and industry and recycled
• to develop a good physical environment as regards buildings and communal areas and preservation of various kinds of cultural monuments and make them more accessible to the general public
Fredrikstad is one of the five cities taking part in the Environmental City Programme
Fredrikstad: To save resources and improve living conditions
The two most important challenges facing Fredrikstad as an environmental city are to develop an urban structure that requires less space, energy and other resources and to improve the environmental, health and living conditions for the city´s inhabitants. Its aim is to define new principles for sustainable development, while taking visible action. Fredrikstad is tackling these challenges and is in the process of achieving its goals. An environmental centre, called Noah´s Park and recently opened in the centre of Fredrikstad, will be an arena for commitment, cooperation and the exchange of information between the local authorities, NGOs and enthusiastic private individuals. One of the organisations in the Centre is the Youth Parliament which works closely with the local authorities (see separate project). Also located in the centre of Fredrikstad is a training centre where local environmental expertise will be built up, teachers will be trained, students´ work will be presented in the form of an “environmental diary” and art competitions on environmental themes will be arranged. Two centres in the town provide voluntary assistance, one in close contact with the Environmental City Programme. These centres have been set up on the initiative of the Ministry of Health and Social Affairs and they arrange voluntary help, such as hospital visits, help with day-to-day shopping and gardening. Fredrikstad´s environmental programme also includes contact with two twin towns in Guatemala: San Martin and Patzun. The schools benefit from this cooperation in environmental studies and Noah´s Park, the Youth Parliament and the training centre all contribute to exchange and cooperation. This is a good example of how the global perspective of Local Agenda 21 can be developed in a municipality. Fredrikstad is not developing into an environmental city in isolation from the surrounding municipalities. It is collaborating with neighbouring city Sarpsborg in drawing up land-use and transport plans in order to facilitate public transport and the use of bicycles.
Youth Parliament
The primary goal of the Youth Parliament is to spread information
about Agenda 21 and to make it easier for young people to be heard
and to take an active part in the work of formulating local Agenda
21s. Its target group is Norwegian children and youth and it is
linked up to the global network of youth parliaments, Global Youth
Action for the Environment.
The Youth Parliament headquarters are located in Fredrikstad, but the young people in Norway´s environmental cities work closely together. The Youth Parliament involves school pupils, for example, in global activities on activity days. In addition to the global themes, which may be “fair trade”, “biodiversity” or “transport”, some special Norwegian activities are selected.
Through the media of tomorrow - the electronic information channels - young people swap notes and promote their work. This exchange is also global. Work is being done to facilitate a friendly link-up on a global level between children and youth relating to Local Agenda 21 on an electronic network with the working title of “Twinning and Linking”.