Cyprus Marine Environment Protection Association
History | Background
CYMEPA was officially registered on the 27th August 1992 as a not-for-profit organization limited by guarantee. A Caretaker Board of Directors has guided CYMEPA to its Official Launching Ceremony and First Annual General Meeting that took place on Sunday, 3rd October 1993.
On that day the Voluntary Declaration "TO SAVE THE SEAS" was signed by the members and was endorsed by the following: International Maritime Organization ( IMO), the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO, the World Wide Fund for Nature ( WWF ), the Club of Rome, The World Conservation Union (IUCN), the International Group of P & I Clubs and the International Chamber of Shipping (ICS ).
Special Endorsement
The Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association (HELMEPA), established in 1982 as the world’s first private sector voluntary marine environment protection association, and which provided a precedent and inspiration for CYMEPA’s foundation, was particularly pleased in being able to endorse the Declaration and Action Plan, which further strengthens and enhances global commitment in environmental protection.
The special Endorsement was signed by HELMEPA Chairman Basil Papachristidis.
Aims
The principal aim of CYMEPA is to encourage and actively assist effective efforts to prevent all forms of pollution of the sea. The Association also helps seafarers and executives to be more aware of safety and the protection of the marine environment. CYMEPA also initiates environmental projects and operates extensive public awareness campaigns, giving priority to environmental education of Schoolchildren.
CYMEPA supports and assists the Government of Cyprus in ratifying and implementing international conventions addressing the protection of the marine environment.
TO SAVE THE SEAS DECLARATION OF A VOLUNTARY COMMITMENT
The oceans are the cradle of life but are seriously endangered by human action. The most serious threat is pollution. Current environmental efforts and regulations are inadequate to control it alone. Accordingly, new and special efforts are urgently needed to remove this threat and to save the seas; therefore,
Believing that protection of the marine environment, the use of the oceans and the exploitation of ocean resources are compatible, providing humanity exercises care, restraint and understanding; and
Confirming that the protection of the global environment requires the highest moral commitment which must take precedence over, but is compatible with, trade, commerce and development;
Accordingly
We, the Shipping Community of Cyprus comprising shipowners, operators, shipmanagers and agents, masters, deck and engineer officers and seamen, and other maritime sector industries and professions, representing a fleet of some 22 million gross tons of commercial shipping, and many other related industries and activities, voluntarily commit ourselves to eliminate ship-generated marine pollution specifically and marine pollution generally.
We, the Commercial Community of Cyprus, comprising land-based industries, business enterprises, corporations and other entities, including owners, shareholders, investors, managers, employees and workers, sincerely believe that:
- An ethic based on respect and care for the Earth is the foundation of sustainable living and that development should not take place at the expense of other groups or later generations, nor threaten the survival of other species;
- The benefits and costs of resource use and environmental conservation should be shared fairly among different communities and between our generation and those who will come after us;
- Development must be conservation-based and must protect the structure, function and diversity of the world’s natural systems, on which we all depend. To do this, we need to conserve life-support systems which are the ecological processes that keep the Earth fit for life and which shape climate, cleanse air and water, regulate water flow, recycle essential elements, create and re-generate soil and enable ecosystems to renew themselves;
- To adopt the ethic for living sustainably, humanity must re-examine its values, alter its behaviour and promote values that support this ethic and discourage those that are incompatible with the sustainable way of life;
- Information must be disseminated and environmental consciousness raised through formal and informal education, training and all kinds of networks so that needed environmental actions are as widely understood as possible.
FIRST BOARD OF DIRECTORS
| Stelios Haji-Ioannou | Costakis Loizou | George Dalacouras |
| Adonis Papadopoulos | Hermann Messner | Menis Karageorgis |
| Joachim Meyer | Michael Joliffe | Phanos Epiphaniou |
| George Tsavliris | Minos Kyriakou | Kikis Lazarides |
| Herman Eden | Antonis Couloucoundis | Kikis Constantinou |
CURRENT BOARD OF DIRECTORS
| George Tsavliris | Stelios Haji-Ioannou | Clelia Haji-Ioannou |
| Themis Papadopoulos | Arthur Mc Whinnie | Michael Michael |
| Eugen Adami | Michael Maratheftis | Andreas Papadopoulos |
| Zenon Mouskas | Robert Thompson | Philippos Philis |
| George Petrou | Christis Aggelides | Artemis Pantelidou |
The founding document of INTERMEPA has been signed
On Tuesday 6th June 2006, on the occasion of "Posidonia Shipping Exhibition" the Steering Committee of INTERMEPA, the International Marine Environment Protection Association, met with the participation of AUSMEPA-Australia, CYMEPA-Cyprus, HELMEPA-Greece and TURMEPA-Turkey.The representatives of these Associations, which are the Founding members of INTERMEPA, signed the legal document/Articles of the Association, which will make INTERMEPA a legal entity by decision of the Greek Courts in the following days. This new international Association will be headquartered in Greece, at the offices of HELMEPA, the Hellenic Marine Environment Protection Association.
During the constructive discussion that followed on the items of the Agenda, the Steering Committee placed specific emphasis on the cooperation between the Junior sectors of the Associations and the Short Film Competition to take place at the hosting countries of the MEPAs.laptop screen
The Secretary of INTERMEPA Dimitris C. Mitsatsos, Director General of HELMEPA, said, "today´s signing is of historic significance as it implements a many year long effort because we believe that the sea should unite people".
Τhe Vice Chairman of INTERMEPA and Chairman of TURMEPA Esref Cerrahoglu, the Chairman of CYMEPA George Tsavliris, and the Vice Chairman of AUSMEPA Michael Kougellis - all of them together with HELMEPA worked to establish INTERMEPA - applauded this statement.
Closing the meeting, the Chairman of INTERMEPA and HELMEPA, Nicky Pappadakis, said that he himself totally agrees as "today we took the first step and the first decisions towards our common future for the benefit of the environment".
