Washington Area Branch
News and Information
Wednesday, February 17, 3:30-5:00pm
at the World Bank, Room MC 10-100,
1818 H Street, NW, Washington, DC
for a presentation by David Burack on ESIA work in Armenia: "A Connecticut Yankee in King Tigran's Court: Team Leader Tales of the Millennium Challenge Account-Armenia Irrigation and Rural Roads Environmental and Social Assessment - Illustrated."
Wednesday, March 17, 3:30-5:00pm
at the World Resources Institute
10 G Street, NE (Suite 800)
Washington, DC 20002 (near Union Station)
for presentations by Florence Landsberg and John Finisdore on ecosystem services in environmental assessments, drawing upon current tools for Ecosystems Services Reviews, with a Case Study from Uganda.
Will Knowland and Gene Owens
Co-Chairs, Washington Area Branch, IAIA
For questions about IAIA WAB -- please feel free to contact either Gene Owens, WAB Co-Chair, at geneowens2@aol.com or 301-320-3512, or me at will.knowland@mottmacinc.com or 240 361-3012;
Documents and Conference Materials
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Branch Coordinator
Will Knowland will.knowland@mottmacinc.com
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Recent Meeting Wednesday, January 14, 2009
IAIA Washington Area Branch Meeting
The World Bank
Main Building, 1818 H St NW
Room MC 10 - 100
Agenda: MCC Gender Policy and Implementation within EIA/ESIA
Virginia Seitz, Senior Director and Practice Leader for Social Impact and Gender Assessment US Millennium Challenge Corporation
MCC supports the involvement of women in MCC-funded programs through a Gender Policy adopted in October 2006, developed through consultations within and outside the organization, and based on international best practices. A leading advocacy organization has called it “the best and most practical gender policy in the U.S. government,” and MCC has received considerable support from the NGO community and Congress for its Gender Policy and MCC’s attention to gender equality.
You can find a Fact Sheet and MCC’s full Gender policy at: http://www.mcc.gov/programs/gender/index.php If you plan to attend, please let me know by email by January 13 so that Bank security is notified to let you into the building.
I'll need your full name and affiliation (e.g. company, organization).
Will Knowland Co-Chair, WAB
Senior Associate, Mott MacDonald Tel: 240-361-3012 will.knowland@mottmacinc.com
Recent Meeting Wednesday, September 10th
Stephen Lintner, Sr. Technical Adviser of the Quality Assurance and Compliance Unit, will provide a progress report on the application of Country Systems. This is a hot topic for international environmental assessment -- see for example the e-Forum on Use of Country Systems for Procurement at World Bank Procurement and the Bank's page on Projects and Operations at Projects and Operations
Also, Gene M. Owens, formerly Senior Environment Specialist with the Asian Development Bank, and currently Co-Director of IAIA-WAB, will present insights into the "Use of Beneficiary Assessment as a Tool for Project Adaptation in China." Enhancing local participation for project management is another emerging theme for international environmental assessment.
We will also peek ahead at plans for a special November session - evening, November 18th -- on Cumulative Impact Assessment, and other news and opportunities for IAIA WAB Members and friends.
As we all swing into the busy fall work season, this will be a great opportunity to renew your network of colleagues, and tap into all that IAIA -- the world’s largest association of environmental assessment professionals -- has to offer.
The meeting will be in room MC 10-100 -- the main building of the World Bank at 1818 H Street, NW.
If you are able to attend, RSVP to Diane Flex at dflex@worldbank.org to ensure quick access through the Bank's security.
Any questions about IAIA WAB -- or your membership status(!) -- please feel free to contact us:, will.knowland@mottmacinc.com or 240 361-3012; or geneowens2@aol.com or 301-320-3512.
We look forward to seeing you on September 10th.
Your new WAB Co-Chairs,
Will and Gene
Earth Day Forum on International EIA, the Next Forty Years
Meeting Agenda
Welcome and Introductions: Will Knowland, IAIA-WAB
Keynote Address: Lee Talbot, former Chairman, CEQ
The National Environmental Policy Act and the beginning of Project EIA and Safeguards
Professor of Environmental Science, International Affairs, and Public Policy, Department of Environmental Science and Policy George Mason University, Fairfax, VA ltalbot@gmu.edu
Dr. Talbot is an ecologist and geographer with over 50 years experience in national and international environmental affairs, biodiversity conservation, management of wild living resources, environmental policies and institutions, environment and development, ecological research and advising in 131 countries. He is also a senior environmental advisor to World Bank and U.N. organizations.
Former positions have included, among others, Chief Scientist and Foreign Affairs Director of the President’s Council on Environmental Quality for Presidents Nixon, Ford and Carter; head of Environmental Sciences for the Smithsonian Institution; Director-General of IUCN - the World Conservation Union; Member of over 20 committees and panels of the National Academy of Sciences-National Research Council; and Senior Scientific Advisor to the International Council of Scientific Unions. He has conducted over 130 exploration and research expeditions to remote or unknown areas on five continents. He is author of over 270 scientific, technical and popular publications including 17 books and monographs, with some translations in nine foreign languages.
Panel of Agency Representatives
Each representative was asked to address three issues:
- How has EIA been applied by my agency/organization internationally over these past several decades – how have we applied it? what have we accomplished with it? and how has it affected our overall mission and work, both at home and internationally?
- What current or emerging issues or challenges do I see, both for EIA globally and for my agency’s role in applying EIA internationally?
- Where do I think EIA practice will be, both in my own agency and globally, over the next 10-20-40 years?
- Cheryl Wasserman - Associate Director for Policy Analysis, Office of Federal Activities, Office of Enforcement & Compliance Assurance, US Environmental Protection Agency
- James Hester - Environmental Coordinator US Agency for International Development
- Jonathan Nash - Director, Environmental and Social Assessment Millennium Challenge Corporation
- Mary Boomgard - Director, Environmental Affairs Overseas Private Investment Corporation
- Jim Mahoney (invited) - Vice President of Engineering & Environment Division US ExIm Bank
- Stacey Hirata - US Army Corps of Engineers | Bruce Carlson - US Army Corps of Engineers
Hosted by the World Bank
9 September 2009 - "Applying SEA at Regional Level -- Mining in Africa."
On September 9th, our first session of the ’09-10” year will focus on "Applying SEA at Regional Level -- Mining in Africa." Our presenter will be Dr. Fernando Loayza, Senior SEA Specialist with the Environmental Department at the World Bank.
Fernando has already practiced this presentation -- at the IAIA Annual Conference last May in Accra, Ghana. So this will be a good review of the topic, and also an opportunity to share impressions of the Accra meeting.
If you made it to Accra yourself, please us know and we’ll be sure to give you an opportunity to share your experience also. It is already time to begin thinking about the IAIA10 - April 6-11 in Geneva, Switzerland!
We have some interesting ideas taking shape for 2009-2010. But, as always, it is up to each of us as Members and Friends to be proactive, either to suggest topics and presenters, or to be one! We will reserve a few minutes for a quick WAB 2009-2010 planning discussion when we get together.
The session will convene at Room MC 10-100 at the World Bank, Main Complex, 1818 H Street, NW, Washington, DC, at 3:30pm on Wednesday, September 9th.
Will Knowland and Gene Owens
Co-Chairs, Washington Area Branch, IAIA
21 October 2009 - IAIA/WAB and EASER Discussion Series
The presentation is available for download using the link below:
You and your colleagues are cordially invited to a presentation jointly sponsored by the International Association for Impact Assessment/Washington Area Branch and the World Bank’s Environment, Social and Rural Development Unit (EASER), Sustainable Development Department, East Asia and Pacific.
Strategic Environmental Assessment in East and Southeast Asia: A Progress Review
Strategic environmental assessment (SEA) is becoming an important tool in mainstreaming environmental consideration in decision making of development policies, plans and programs in developing countries in East and Southeast Asia. China and Vietnam have already developed SEA systems, while Lao PDR, Cambodia and Fiji are just experiment with SEA with the support of donors. This presentation will review the progress made with strategic environmental assessment (SEA) in East and Southeast Asia in recent years. Drawing upon a recent analysis of 15 case studies from 7 countries in the region, a comparative overview of evolving SEA systems and practices in China, Indonesia, Lao PRD, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam will be presented. The presentation will also offer recommendations for further development of SEA systems in the region.
The Presenter: Jian Xie, Senior Environmental Specialist, EASER.
Mr. Xie is responsible for managing a number of technical assistance and operational projects, including a SEA regional program in East Asia and Pacific Region. He holds his Ph.D. in Urban Planning from Cornell University in 1995. He received a B.Sc. in Physical Geography and a M.Sc. in Environmental Science from Peking University (Beijing, China) in 1984 and 1987, respectively.
Co-Chairs: Jan Bojö, Acting Manager and Environment Sector Leader, EASER, and Gene Owens, Co-Chairman, IAIA Washington Area Branch (IAIA/WAB) and former senior environmental specialist with Asian Development Bank
For headcount purposes, please RSVP. If you need an entry pass (required for a visitor) to the World Bank, please RSVP to will.knowland@mottmacinc.com.
The hard copy of the World Bank’s Discussion Paper "Strategic Environmental Assessment in East and Southeast Asia: A Progress Review and Comparison of Country Systems and Cases" will be available at the seminar.
Wednesday, October 21, 2009 3:30am -- 5:30pm, MC 5-100, World Bank Main Complex World Bank, 1818 H Street, NW, Washington, DC