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5th ECO Ministerial Meeting on Environment kicks off in Turkey

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Green energy dominated the closed-door discussions among senior officials of the 10 member states of the Economic Cooperation Organization – or ECO – at its 5th Ministerial Meeting in the Turkish city of Istanbul this week. On Wednesday, the meeting presented its recommendations in a roadmap for the future. The roadmap, called ‘Istanbul Declaration on Climate Change and Green Economy’, will impact an overall population of 350 million living in the ECO region. Global warming and climate change are key factors that place stress on the environment, the effects of which adversely impact social, environmental and economic spheres of life, and create food and energy insecurities. The participating members called for the development of green energy to transform existing economics for sustainable development.

During the meeting, Iran’s Vice President and the head of the country’s Environmental protection organization Masoumeh Ebtekar emphasized the need for collective solutions to regional problems. She also called for the peaceful use of nuclear energy to alleviate environmetal problems. The success of the Istanbul Declaration depends on a higher level of political will and proactive efforts of the member states.The fifth Ministerial Meeting on the Environment has promoted cooperation for the use of solar and nuclear energy to relieve pressure on the region’s environment. While ECO member countries are yet to reap the rewards of solar energy programs in the long term, Iran’s nuclear energy program in the ECO region serves as an example of the benefits to the environment as well as effectively providing energy to the civilian population.

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