Chapter 6: Country Reports
Lithuania
Introduction
Around the time of Peristroika, democratic reforms allowed for the creation of independent environmental and cultural heritage groups. When the law on the foundation of organizations passed in 1987, the ecology movement was founded and many NGOs in different cities began operating. In the autumn of 1988, Lithuania's environmental NGOs established the Lithuanian Green Movement (LGM), an umbrella union of environmental clubs that has since played an important and successful role in environmental protection activities. For example, LGM helped to stop the construction of a third reactor at the Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant in 1988; Baltic Sea Protection Day helped Lithuanian greens become more powerful; and, in 1989, the Lithuanian Green Movement began an anti-military campaign against the Russian Army. All of these activities helped the environmental movement to achieve extreme popularity, and during the first free elections in 1990, ten representatives of the LGM were elected to Parliament. Later, the LGM moved in a political direction and created the Lithuanian Green Party.
The period of democratic reform was famous for giant meetings (hundreds of thousands of people) and radical protests against the activities of the Soviet authorities, including environmental pollution. But the situation changed dramatically a few years after the declaration of independence, when an economic crisis in Lithuania forced citizens to focus all of their attention on earning a living, sometimes by illegal means, and only a small part of the population felt responsible for environmental protection. However, environmental NGOs have become more professional over the years; they have active memberships and are moving in many new directions. Some of the main issues include the protection of the Baltic Sea basin, conserving protected areas and natural landscapes, developing renewable energy resources, combating air pollution and acid rain problems, and raising public awareness.
Lithuanian environmental NGOs try to achieve their goals by holding demonstrations and protest actions, organizing and participating in exhibitions, seminars, conferences and camps, lobbying government officials, and collecting and distributing information. Some environmental NGOs have joined international organizations and perform independent activities, an important step as Lithuanian NGOs begin to lobby at the international level. A well-established and strong membership in the Lithuania Green Movement helped create a network of domestic environmental NGOs. The leaders of the biggest groups work to satisfy the needs of NGOs by organizing meetings to exchange information and facilitate communal decisionmaking.
Environmental lobbying efforts are more difficult now than in the period before 1990 because politicians only remember their responsibilities to the environment during elections. Located far from the center of Europe, the Baltic states have not received the levels of funding other CEE countries have, and many good ideas have not been realized because of the state of relative impoverishment.
Organizational Characteristics
Over half of Lithuania's NGOs (59 percent) are located in the capital city or other large urban centers, and about two-thirds (64 percent) have up to 25 members. Since 1990, an average of five new NGOs are created each year. Most of these groups classify themselves as grassroots organizations (33 percent) or environmental professionals (17 percent), and most operate on the local (37 percent) or national level (43 percent).
Activities
The most important NGO activities are education and training (69 percent), environmental fieldwork (56 percent) and the dissemination of environmental information (53 percent).
Financial Status
Lithuanian NGOs report a wide range of financial circumstances, from very poor (24 percent) to good enough (27 percent). Not one NGO reported having a very good financial status. Most NGOs operate on annual budgets of less than USD 500 (31 percent) or between USD 1,000 and USD 5,000 (27 percent). Most of this money comes from foreign grants.
Needs and Problems
Problems with official registration, limited access to means of communication and insufficient funding are the three biggest obstacles facing Lithuanian NGOs. They listed capacity building and support for implementing environmental projects as their two most important needs. Fund raising, project management and proposal writing topped the list of training needs.
Cooperation
About one-fifth of Lithuanian NGOs cooperate with other NGOs in joint projects. Less than 10 percent cooperate closely with the national government, and about one-fifth cooperate with local governments. Increased cooperation with both NGOs and governments is seen as critically important by about half of the NGOs.
Experience with the Regional Environmental Center
Over one-third of Lithuanian NGOs (36 percent) see the REC Local Office as a traditional partner. It should be noted, however, that the REC Local Office in Vilnius has only recently been opened, and status as an official foundation is still being sought. However, in the past year-and-a-half the REC Local Office coordinator in Lithuania has been actively developing REC programs (particularly in granting) and researching ways that the REC can best serve its constituents. It is therefore envisioned that once the office is fully operational, the REC will be able to address the specific needs of Lithuanian environmental NGOs.
REC * PUBLICATIONS * PROBLEMS, PROGRESS AND POSSIBILITIES * COUNTRY REPORTS
