The last decade's voluntary Global Ear Care work-lobbying and networking, using different strategies-in the whole has been positive, reflected by the creation of an appropriate instrument to launch concrete programmes and has also given good WHO-HQ relations, though without budget and adequate governmental involvement. The long-term goal is to get D-country Ear Care up to the same level as D-country eye care. One important step on this way-hopefully facilitated by the Bari workshop as an example of 'informal' networking and linkage of people after personal initiatives-is to develop an Ear Care structure in Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean countries functioning as successfully asd the one in Asia.