International cooperation
Global is local, local is global
The great challenges of our time transcend national borders. For our climate, our health, our food, our goods, we depend on all kinds of parties abroad. And communities abroad are affected by the way we act here. International cooperation is therefore key to addressing the issues of our time. To improve our world, FIC focuses mainly on international cooperation.
Intercultural sensitivity
National cooperation at sector level is already difficult, and it requires professional guidance. International cooperation is even more complex, due to differences in cultures and languages. FIC has the necessary experience to build bridges between cultures and the required language skills. The founder of FIC graduated on a thesis centred on Winch’s theory of cultural relativism. He has worked with various cultures within the International Institute of Social Studies, an international development university in The Hague where he was active as chairman of the management team and secretary of the executive and supervisory board. As director of the Peace Palace he received representatives from many countries and cultures and promoted peaceful international cooperation.
International advocacy
The founder of FIC was internationally active on behalf of municipalities and their public waste companies as a global board member of the International Solid Waste Association (ISWA) on behalf of which he visited UNFCCC climate summits and partners in a number of countries. He was also president of the European partnership Municipal Waste Europe. In these roles, he promoted a sustainable playing field, producer responsibility for recycling, and the international exchange of knowledge and technology for sustainable waste management and our climate. As director of the Peace Palace, he worked with the Diplomatic Corps and the Judiciary Corps. The FIC network is at the right level to guide you quickly.
From waste to education, from the boardroom to diplomacy, FIC has experience in international cooperation at all levels: local, national, European and global. With its complementary network in the field of international law, FIC has all the entry points for successful international cooperation.
International success
The fact that successful international campaigns can be achieved relatively quickly has been demonstrated by various trajectories. In a short period of time, the founder of FIC set up a successful lobby with ISWA for the waste sector to promote financing exchange of knowledge and technologies. The contribution of the waste sector and the need to invest in it was subsequently integrated in the climate agreements made at the UN climate summit in Durban and in the Rio+20 sustainability summit. The interventions of Municipal Waste Europe under his chairmanship also proved successful, both in terms of competition and in the regulation of the Waste Framework Directive. He then promoted a bilateral trade agreement between the Netherlands and Morocco for the exchange of knowledge and technology aimed at sustainable waste management and recycling, which was also agreed.
The Dutch success in reducing emissions of CFCs, HCFCs and HFCs from refrigeration installations and air conditioning for the entire Dutch industry has already become the basis for the European approach, in part owing to his efforts.
International cooperation for sustainable development and decent work
The Netherlands is a global leader in waste management and recycling as well as in reducing emissions out of refrigeration and airconditioning equipment. These sectors have a major role to play in combatting climate change due to the emission of methane and F-gases. In the waste sector, materials from every sector involved in the manufacture of products come together, regardless where they are produced in the world. The contribution of the waste sector to a sustainable circular economy is therefore cross-sectoral and cuts across borders. At the same time, working conditions in the waste sector and in the industry around the globe are not at the high level achieved in the Netherlands. The founder of FIC has many years of experience in the waste sector, in the refrigeration and air conditioning sector and in the field of working conditions. This is the reason why FIC focuses on promoting international cooperation in the areas of sustainable development and decent work.
Because of the combination of these issues and FIC’s focus on peace, religious tolerance and good relations, FIC is particularly committed to improving dialogue and cooperation between the Western world and the Arab world.
FIC is active for ISWA and has been asked to serve as Special Envoy for Holland Circular Hotspot.
FIC promotes Climate Leadership and works together with Carraway Strategies.
FIC offers its services to those who are seeking to address an international issue, who need international support, who want to become internationally active, or who want to cooperate more effectively internationally.