During the GCAP (Global Call to Action Against Poverty) meeting, which took place between 13 and 15 March in Beirut, the delegates agreed to continue GCAP as a global movement and to focus on the fight against structural poverty and inequality. (We reported in the Info 08.) Now the official final document, the Beirut Declaration, was published, in which also the demand for a more just world order in the sense of the Global Marshall Plan
Initiative is included.

To the Beirut Declaration
To GCAP's webseite

a) Students' conference on the Global Marshall Plan

On 27 March 2006 a student conference on the "Global Marshall Plan" took place at the Bundespräsident-Theodor-Heuss-Schule Homberg/Efze, Germany (THS). The event was a part of the Comenius-activities, promoted by the European Union, on the subject "education for sustainable development in Europe". Those have been organized at the THS for years with great success and with the participation of students and teachers from the UK, Spain, Rumania and the Czech Republic. More (pdf, 30 kB)

Article from the Hessisch Niedersächsische Allgemeine (HNA) of 1 April 2006 on the conference (in German)
"Europa diskutiert - Comenius-Konferenz an der Theodor-Heuss-Schule"

Link to the school's website

b) The Initiative at the Students' Academy
The Students' Academy Tutzing, which was founded in November 2005, will hold its first conference on sustainability on 18 May 2006. One of the main themes of the conference will be the Global Marshall Plan. More information on the academy and the project 2006 can be found here. (in
German)

c) The Initiative in the curriculum

The Global Marshall Plan Initiative's concept was included into the Curriculum of the International Summer University - Audiovisual Communication of Sustainability - Renewable Energies" Santiago – Berlin. Please find further information in the report by Dr. Joachim Borner, who plead for inclusion of the issue. (in German, 10 kB, pdf)

Link to the summer university

On 22 April the "Green Economy's" committee of regional groups allowed unanimously an application to support the Global Marshall Plan Initiative. The "Green Economy" will advocate the Initiative with Austria's Chamber of Commerce and would like to get actively involved with the Initiative in Austria. The "Green Economy" is a trade association of enterprises which act environmentally and socially responsible. The association argues for worldwide ethical guiding principles. (Manfred Nagele)

The official declaration of support (in German, pdf 50 kB)

On 27 April all four parties of the Austrian parliament agreed on a petition to introduce an EU tax to finance the EU and development cooperation. This tax shall be mandatory for all of the EU's members and could be a tax on currency transactions, levy on air tickets etc.

More information in German:
Press release of the ÖVP (Österreichische Volkspartei)
Article from oekonews.at

German parties also called for innovative sources of financing. At the reading of the Bundestag's budget in early April, the SPD parliamentary party demanded the inclusion of innovative sources of financing to reach the 0.7% in ODA. More information (in German, pdf, 130 kB)

The left party in the Bundestag submitted a petition to introduce an air ticket tax like the one which will come into effect in France in June. More information (in German, pdf, 10 kB)

There are no new articles in English. For the press review in German please visit the German Newsletter or go to the Global Marshall Plan website.

There are currently no international Global Marshall Plan events planned. For events in Germany and Austria please visit the German Newsletter or go to the Global Marshall Plan website.

Please send us your comments on this newsletter, our website or the Initiative itself: office@globalmarshallplan.org


We do not take responsibility for the contents of articles written by external authors.

Global Marshall Plan news editors - Global Marshall Plan Initiatve
Helge Bork, Andrea von Lehmden, Frithjof Finkbeiner (V.i.S.d.P.R.)
Global Marshall Plan Initiative
Coordination office
Steckelhörn 9
20457 Hamburg
Germany

The Global Marshall Plan Initiative pleads for an Eco-Social Market Economy by the means of a Global Marshall Plan.

Global Marshall Plan News is the official newsletter of the Global Marshall Plan Initiative to all interested published on the first Friday of the
month. All relevant emails, submitted by the editorial deadline (last Friday of the month) through office@globalmarshallplan.org will be included in
the next edition of the News.