ENA, the European Nursery Stock Association, has elected a new President

 

The European Nursery Stock Association (ENA) held its summer meeting in Stavanger, Norway, first week of July 2014.

 

The organisation’s General Assembly approved its first set of ‘Domestic Regulations’, the rules that determine how it will function; this was the final stage of the process of becoming a ‘Non-Profit Organisation’ (NPO). NPO status permits ENA to be formally recognised by the European institutions and will allow ENA to take a more prominent role in the consultation process that develops legislation governing trade in the European Union.

 

The meeting also established two new Working Groups:

 

The ENA EU Legislation Working Group has been established to draw together expertise from within each of ENA's Member Organisations; to promote an understanding amongst Member Organisations of the potential impact such legislation might have upon trade; to draw together a common ENA view of such legislation and, where appropriate, to lobby to influence such legislation. The General Assembly appointed Marc Van Hulle of Belgium to Chair the Group and to make regular reports back to the General Assembly of its progress.Specifically, the General Assembly recognised three pieces of EU legislation currently being reviewed within the European Parliament that are likely to have a major impact on Trade. These concern: Plant Health, Plant Reproductive Material and Official Controls. The Working Group is asked to first give its attention to these regulations.  More generally, the General Assembly asked the Working Group to identify other regulation reviews and proposals that might impact on Trade and bring them to the attention of ENA; the subject of Invasive Species was identified as one that might require attention in the near future.

 

The ENA Promotion Working Group was established to identify relevant 'generic'  promotional activities taking place in Member States and bring these to the attention of ENA, to share the lessons learned from those activities and to encourage increased and more effective promotional activities in the future. The General Assembly appointed Leon Smet of Holland to Chair the Group and to make regular reports back to the General Assembly of its progress.The General Assembly specifically noted the increasing importance of the 'Green City' movement within Europe and asked the Group to begin its work with this area of promotion.

 

At the conclusion of its Summer Meeting, ENA held elections and is pleased to announce that Mr Tim Edwards from the UK was elected President, after Maurizio Lapponi from Italy, and that Mr Patrick Svensson of Sweden was elected Vice President.