TAI Assessment Training, 21-23 April 2010, Phnom Penh, Cambodia

The Thailand Environment Institute (TEI), the Southeast Asia leader of The Access Initiative, recently organized a coalition of Cambodia nongovernmental organizations that will eventually complete the TAI assessment of Cambodia by the end of December 2010.

The TAI assessment in Cambodia has been funded by the Swedish Environmental Secretariat for Asia (SENSA). Partners in Cambodia will use the results of the assessment to engage government leaders to improve transparency and public participation in environmental decision-making in Cambodia, with the expectation that such reforms will lead to better environmental outcomes.

The Cambodia coalition started their TAI assessment process during a training workshop from April 21-23, 2010, led by TAI core team partner Thailand Environment Institute. At the workshop, coalition members were trained on the TAI Assessment Toolkit. After a round of detailed introductions, a presentation on TAI, the methodology and the operation of the network ensued, the participants learned about report writing and follow-up advocacy activities. Before the closing of the meeting, an active discussion took place on the case study selection and working plan.

The coalition of civil society groups includes Center for Development Oriented Research in Agriculture and Livelihood Systems (CENTDOR), Community Legal Education Center (CLEC), Culture and Environment Preservation Association (CEPA), Fisheries Action Coalition Team (FACT) and Advocacy and Policy Institute (API), the coalition’s lead organization.