Civil society actions for a toxics--free future.

Participation of civil society in efforts to protect public health and the environment from chemical exposure is often undertaken in the context of major multilateral environmental agreements, especially in developing and transition countries. However, often there is confusion about what these agreements mean in practice and how civil society actually effectively contributes to their implementation. This paper will explore how public interest nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and civil society organizations in developing and transition countries have shaped and used multilateral environmental agreements to advance chemical safety issues nationally and how, in turn, these multilateral agreements have shaped NGO agendas. The emphasis is on how public interest NGOs and civil society organizations have utilized key elements of chemicals agreements in their chemical safety activities on the ground. Obstacles faced by NGOs, tools and methods used, and case studies of successful activities are discussed.