NGO Networking in Turkey

While in Istanbul attending the Black Sea Commission ESAS AG meeting, Sea Alarm took the opportunity to organise a Turkish national NGO meeting hosted at MEKE Marine premises. The main aim of the meeting, held on 4 November 2009, was to bring Turkish NGOs together and to have a look at past experiences, exploring each other’s specific expertise and interest in the matter and the contributions that each could bring to an integrated oiled wildlife response. National capacity for oiled wildlife response was discussed in the context of a country having an extensive coastline, emphasising the importance of having access to sensitivity maps and data on vulnerable marine species. A second meeting to continue these efforts of information gathering and strengthen the level of preparedness in Turkey is under consideration, which would most likely be held in spring 2010. Sea Alarm would like to thank MEKE Marine for their hospitality in hosting this meeting