Acknowledgements

Many people have provided invaluable support and contributions to the Conference on Sustainable Development. The Conference was initiated by Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Dr. Jose Ramos Horta and Timor Aid. Very early on in the reconstruction of East Timor, when few resources were available, Timor Aid was able to rapidly build a functional organisational structure. This capacity assisted the progress of the conference, providing resources and logistical support. The participatory process of organising the conference was always encouraged by Timor Aid CEO, Juan Federer and President, Ceu Federer. It was due to the efforts of Timor Aid that the conference was able to become a reality.

The Conference, and hence this publication have been made possible by support from donors: USAID, HIVOS (Netherlands), Catholic Fund for Overseas Development (CAFOD), Trocaire (Ireland), Embassy of Finland, Canada Fund UNICEF, UNDP, NZODA, and AusAID.

Further Support came from: Protimos Foundation, Ecological Architects Association (Australia), Regional Community Forestry Training Centre (RECOFTC – Thailand), Environment Australia, IUCN, Icelandic International Development Agency, Northern Territory University, Australian Volunteers International, BP Solar, Australian Computer Society, Natural Resources and Environment -Victoria, RMIT Department of Geospatial Science.

The conference was organised in a highly participatory way, with broad consultation and involvement of East Timorese. Many months went into establishing a democratic process to organise the conference. Members of a variety of East Timorese groups served as advisors, and as part of the organising committee.

Advisors to the conference were: Mario Nunes - East Timor Forestry Group (ETFOG), Joaquim Fonseca - Yaysan HAK, Aderito de Jesus - SAHE, Demetrio Amaral - Haburas, Angus Mackay and George Bouma - Environment Protection Unit, ETTA, Carlos Alberto Baros Forindo - Ema maTA Dalan ba Progresso (ETADEP).

The organising committee were: Maria Isabel Da Silva, Americo Da Silva, Ajerino Vieira, Annalisa Koeman (Assistant Coordinator), Carrie Deutsch (Assistant Coordinator), Russell Anderson (Conference Coordinator).

Others who worked on the Conference were: Marc Beuniche, Susie Russell, Sue Lennox Alfredo Isaac, Filomena da Silva Soares, Steve Malloch, Bret Eartheart, and Christian Ranheim.

Thanks to the many translators and interpreters, and in particular to Xylia Ingham, Kylie Tallo, Jeremy Stringer, James O’Brien, Richard Curtis, Fung Rodgers, Oliver Green and Catharina Gunawan.

And thanks to all the other people who have volunteered some of their time.

Thanks also go the moderators and workshop facilitators who generously volunteered their time and expertise. In particular, thanks to Aurelio Guterres, Dionisio Babo Soares, and Helder Da Costa for their enthusiasm, support and commitment to sustainable development in East Timor.

Special thanks to the Pinto family, particularly Nona, Celestina and Abeto.

Particularly helpful in giving direction and support to the conference, were Jeremy Carew-Reid (International Centre for Environment Management) and Jenny Bryant (UNDP Sustainable Development Officer for the Pacific). Their experience, advice, and encouragement were invaluable. Arthur Hanson (International Institute for Sustainable Development) contributed greatly to the success of the conference. His expertise and assistance gave impetus to the conference outcomes.

This book has been designed and edited by Russell Anderson and Carrie Deutsch. Many thanks to the translators and proofreaders and particularly Xylia Ingham, the chief translator of this book.