HISTORY
The Pacific Basin Consortium on Hazardous Wastes (PBC) was established in 1986 by a group of scientists and engineers to facilitate dialogue and cooperation among scientists, industry professionals, government officials, students and policy makers regarding the problems associated with hazardous waste production, management and remediation in the Pacific Basin. Over the years, the PBC attracted a wider audience, including individuals and organizations interested in other environment and health issues.

The PBC was housed at the East-West Center until 1999 when it relocated to the University of the Philippines. There, the PBC continued to provide a forum for people to share information, policy, strategies and research on hazardous waste and related issues through conferences and trainings held every eighteen months to two years. The PBC returned to the East-West Center (EWC) in Honolulu, Hawaii from 2004-2017. Working closely with the EWC, the PBC adopted a greatly expanded focus to reflect a growing recognition among its directors of the importance of addressing inter-related environment and health issues in the Pacific Basin Region. The name of the organization has been modified in keeping with this expanded scope of work to be the Pacific Basin Consortium for Environment and Health.

Currently, the PBC Secretariat is supported by the Children’s Health and Environment Program at the University of Queensland.

OBJECTIVES
The objectives of the Pacific Basin Consortium (PBC) are to:

  • Promote technology and information exchange on environment and health issues in the Pacific Basin.
  • Develop a network of individuals and organizations expert in research and policies relating to environment and health issues in the Pacific Basin.
  • Develop sustainable, affordable alternatives and solutions to environmental health problems facing the Pacific Basin.
  • Serve as an objective source of analysis, review and critique on issues of health and environment in the Pacific Basin.
  • Stimulate, coordinate and conduct research on and promote sustainable policy for the management of environment and health issues.

ACTIVITIES
The Consortium is involved in the following activities:

  • Professional network of experts, maintained by participants who belong to member organizations as well as participants who are employed elsewhere in the environment and health communities. Through peer review and approval processes, members can receive authoritative advice on a variety of environmental health issues, consultations with local governments, and evaluations of reports and manuscripts.
  • Information exchange, which emphasizes technical meetings, but also involves publishing written reports and newsletters. The Consortium convenes workshops and conferences and maintains a reference collection of reports and documents relevant to hazardous waste research and management in the Pacific Basin for use by member organization staff. Available Consortium publications include the proceedings of Consortium conferences, research and technical reports, public information brochures and country survey information.
  • Training courses, which are conducted as part of most conferences. They are open to all qualified conference participants, whether from member organizations or not. Staff exchanges for training purposes are also promoted.
  • Collaborative research, which can include a coordinated study of parts of a problem, a team effort on common topics, or an exchange of technical staff among member institutions. The Consortium Secretariat assists in proposal preparation and fundraising for collaborative initiatives.

CHARTER
Please click here for details of the Pacific Basin Consortium Charter

IN APPRECIATION

The Consortium Secretariat was located at the East-West Center in Honolulu, Hawaii for many years. PBC acknowledges the contributions made by staff, and is grateful for the immeasurable support offered by the East West Center.