Dear friends of BALLERINA

We are happy to inform you that the BALLERINA website will be officially launched on 22 April, 1997 on http://www.baltic-region.net/

In accordance with the agreement at the Stockholm BALLERINA workshop in June 1996, and following successful fund raising, the Interim Steering Committee wishes to inform you that the first Annual BALLERINA Conference will be held in Latvia on 22-23 May, 1997.

The Conference will be held at Hotel Konventas Seta in the Old Town of Riga. (Changed from Hotel Vaivari in Jurmala, Latvia.) It will start at 09.00 on Thursday 22 May and is expected to end at lunch time on Friday 23 May. We kindly ask you to reserve these dates.

Items on the Agenda will include:

• Review of the development of BALLERINA since the Workshop in Stockholm, June 1996
• Presentation and discussion of BALLERINA v.1.0 (http://www.baltic-region.net/)
• Discussion and agreement on Lead Parties and International Advisory Group
• BALLERINA and the Baltic Agenda 21 process
• Presentation of on-going Web initiatives and recent Web products by BALLERINA partners
• Discussion on a ‘programme’ for BALLERINA capacity building and infrastructure support targetting
• Exchange of ideas and discussions of concrete proposals

A formal invitation to attend the Conference, including a detailed Conference Programme, will be sent out in the very near future to all participants in the Stockholm BALLERINA workshop. In addition, a number of organizations and indivuals who have, during the past months, expressed an interest to contribute to and participate in the further development of the BALLERINA network will also be invited. Others who receive this announcement, and are interested to get an invitation, should send send their full postal address and e-mail address to sindre.langaas@grida.no

Costs for travel and accomodation for a limited number participants from Belarus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia and (Ukraine) will be covered by resources once more generously allocated by the Swedish Environment Protection Agency.

We are convinced that this first Annual BALLERINA Conference will provide important inputs to our joint endeavours to make BALLERINA a useful tool for all those working for an ecologically sustainable development in the Baltic Sea Region.

We are looking forward to seeing you in Latvia in May!

On behalf of the BALLERINA Interim Steering Committee,
Yours sincerely

Sindre Langaas & Britt Hägerhäll Aniansson

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