By decision BC-III/19, the Conference of the Parties of the Basel Convention in 1995 selected Trinidad and Tobago as the location to establish a regional centre for the Caribbean sub-region. This resulted in the establishment of Basel Convention Regional Centre for Training and Technology Transfer for the Caribbean Region (BCRC Caribbean) in 1998. The Centre is hosted by the Government of Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, which supports with technical, financial and administrative support. A Framework Agreement for its establishment was signed between the Government of Trinidad and Tobago and the Secretariat of the Basel Convention on behalf of the Conference of the Parties in 2004.

Consequently, the BCRC Caribbean now functions as an autonomous regional institution and is hosted by the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago and incorporated under Act Number 2 of 2008 of the Laws of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. The Centre provides services to its Caribbean Contracting Member Parties to enable them to fulfil their obligations under the Convention. The parties thus served are:  Antigua and Barbuda, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Cuba, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Guyana, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, and Trinidad and Tobago.

The BCRC-Caribbean has been entrusted by its contracting parties to assist them to comply with and implement the provisions and mandates of the chemicals and waste agenda as defined by the various MEAs acceded to by its member states. Such requirements have led to the expansion of the knowledge base and service delivery of the BCRC-Caribbean to its member states beyond its traditional Convention boundaries. Presently, the Centre operates within this increased scope and its work plan, as defined in its biennial Business Plans developed in consultation with its member states, focuses on a more holistic approach to chemicals and waste management for the Caribbean Region. Some of the examples of its recent undertakings include:

• Caribbean Sub-regional Workshop in Support for the Ratification and Early Implementation of the Minamata Convention on Mercury
• Caribbean Sub-Regional Workshop on Updating National Implementation Plans and POPs Wastes under the Stockholm Convention
• Introductory Workshop on Industrial Chemicals under the Rotterdam Convention for the Caribbean
• Regional implementation of the GEF-funded Full-Sized Project 'Development and Implementation of a Sustainable Management Mechanism for POPs in the Caribbean.'

The last example demonstrates how it has evolved and enhanced its capacity to implement a full sized GEF project. The BCRC Caribbean and the UNIDO have collaborated in order to develop and implement a full-sized GEF funded project entitled 'Development and Implementation of a Sustainable Management Mechanism for POPs in the Caribbean' (GEF 5558 Project). The project was developed in light of the shortcomings faced by Caribbean countries in implementing the Stockholm Convention and addressing the threats posed by POPs to human and environmental health at the national level.

The BCRC-Caribbean performs all of these activities, as they pertain to its regional role, under the general guidance and in coordination with the BRS Secretariat. Simultaneously, the activities of the Centre are coordinated by the Secretariat along with the work of other BCRCs/SCRCs and with other relevant activities of the Parties to the Convention, international organizations, programmes, funds, and other institutions.

For more information on this and the other Regional Centres, please visit the BRS Secretariat website.

Following adoption at COP.12 on an interim basis, the e-waste Technical Guidelines are now available in all languages. To give them their full title, the “Technical guidelines on transboundary movements of electrical and electronic waste and used electrical and electronic equipment, in particular regarding the distinction between waste and non-waste under the Basel Convention” are an important resource for parties seeking to manage in a sustainable way the ever-growing e-waste stream, which according to recent research constitutes almost 50 million tonnes per year.

The guidelines are available here.

For more on e-waste please see our webpages.

With our growing appetite for electrical and electronic products, combined with rapid innovation and ever-shorter product lifespans, e-waste has now become one of the fast growing waste streams.

This course will help you to understand why and how we must manage e-waste in an environmentally sound manner and how you can take action on e-waste in your own life, business, or organization.

The aims of the course are to:

• Show how sound management of e-waste can help reduce GHG emissions, mitigate climate change and prevent hazards to health and the environment in accordance with the Basel, Rotterdam, and Stockholm Conventions
• Share best practices, technological innovations, and sustainable e-waste recovery and recycling business models
• Explore how the value in e-waste can be extracted in a way that supports the local economy and protects people’s health and the environment.

The E-waste challenge MOOC was developed by the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm conventions Secretariat and Climate-KIC in cooperation with KU Leuven, in Belgium, and the World Resources Forum, an International non-profit organization based in Switzerland. The course will provide at least one ECTS to students who can take it at KU Leuven.

Register for the e-waste challenge MOOC at this address. The course will launch from 4 April 2016.