Eco Friendly Printwork

European citizens initiative'

What is the 'European citizens initiative'?

The Lisbon Treaty introduces a new form of public participation in European Union policy shaping, the European citizens' initiative, which enables one million citizens who are nationals of a significant number of Member States to call directly on the European Commission to bring forward an initiative of interest to them in an area of EU competence. Before citizens can start exercising this new right, a few ground rules and procedures have to be laid down in an EU regulation.

The Treaty at a glance . http://europa.eu/lisbon_treaty/glance/index_en.htm

On 1 December 2009, the Treaty of Lisbon entered into force, thus ending several years of negotiation about institutional issues.

The Treaty of Lisbon amends the current EU and EC treaties, without replacing them. It provides the Union with the legal framework and tools necessary to meet future challenges and to respond to citizens' demands.

• 1. A more democratic and transparent Europe, with a strengthened role for the European Parliament and national parliaments, more opportunities for citizens to have their voices heard and a clearer sense of who does what at European and national level.
• A strengthened role for the European Parliament: the European Parliament, directly elected by EU citizens, is provided with important new powers regarding EU legislation, the EU budget and international agreements. In particular, the increase of co-decision procedure in policy-making ensures that the European Parliament is placed on an equal footing with the Council, representing Member States, for the vast bulk of EU legislation.
• A greater involvement of national parliaments: national parliaments have greater opportunities to be involved in the work of the EU, in particular thanks to a new mechanism to monitor that the Union only acts where results can be better attained at EU level (subsidiarity). Together with the strengthened role for the European Parliament, it will enhance democracy and increase legitimacy in the functioning of the Union.
• A stronger voice for citizens: thanks to the Citizens' Initiative, one million citizens from a number of Member States have the possibility to call on the Commission to bring forward new policy proposals.
• Who does what: the relationship between the Member States and the European Union become clearer with the categorisation of competences.
• Withdrawal from the Union: the Treaty of Lisbon explicitly recognises for the first time the possibility for a Member State to withdraw from the Union.
• 2. A more efficient Europe, with simplified working methods and voting rules, streamlined and modern institutions for a EU of 27 members and an improved ability to act in areas of major priority for today's Union.
• Effective and efficient decision-making: qualified majority voting in the Council is extended to new policy areas to make decision-making faster and more efficient. From 2014 on, the calculation of qualified majority will be based on the double majority of Member States and people, thus representing the dual legitimacy of the Union. A double majority will be achieved when a decision is taken by 55% of the Member States representing at least 65% of the Union's population.
• A more stable and streamlined institutional framework: the Treaty of Lisbon creates the function of President of the European Council elected for two and a half years, introduces a direct link between the election of the Commission President and the results of the European elections, provides for new arrangements for the future composition of the European Parliament, and includes clearer rules on enhanced cooperation and financial provisions.
• Improving the life of Europeans: the Treaty of Lisbon improves the EU's ability to act in several policy areas of major priority for today's Union and its citizens. This is the case in particular for the policy areas of freedom, security and justice, such as combating terrorism or tackling crime. It also concerns to some extent other areas including energy policy, public health, civil protection, climate change, services of general interest, research, space, territorial cohesion, commercial policy, humanitarian aid, sport, tourism and administrative cooperation.
• 3. A Europe of rights and values, freedom, solidarity and security, promoting the Union's values, introducing the Charter of Fundamental Rights into European primary law, providing for new solidarity mechanisms and ensuring better protection of European citizens.
• Democratic values: the Treaty of Lisbon details and reinforces the values and objectives on which the Union is built. These values aim to serve as a reference point for European citizens and to demonstrate what Europe has to offer its partners worldwide.
• Citizens' rights and Charter of Fundamental Rights: the Treaty of Lisbon preserves existing rights while introducing new ones. In particular, it guarantees the freedoms and principles set out in the Charter of Fundamental Rights and gives its provisions a binding legal force. It concerns civil, political, economic and social rights.
• Freedom of European citizens: the Treaty of Lisbon preserves and reinforces the "four freedoms" and the political, economic and social freedom of European citizens.
• Solidarity between Member States: the Treaty of Lisbon provides that the Union and its Member States act jointly in a spirit of solidarity if a Member State is the subject of a terrorist attack or the victim of a natural or man-made disaster. Solidarity in the area of energy is also emphasised.
• Increased security for all: the Union gets an extended capacity to act on freedom, security and justice, which brings direct benefits in terms of the Union's ability to fight crime and terrorism. New provisions on civil protection, humanitarian aid and public health also aim at boosting the Union's ability to respond to threats to the security of European citizens.
• 4. Europe as an actor on the global stage will be achieved by bringing together Europe's external policy tools, both when developing and deciding new policies. The Treaty of Lisbon gives Europe a clear voice in relations with its partners worldwide. It harnesses Europe's economic, humanitarian, political and diplomatic strengths to promote European interests and values worldwide, while respecting the particular interests of the Member States in Foreign Affairs.
• A new High Representative for the Union in Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, also Vice-President of the Commission, will increase the impact, the coherence and the visibility of the EU's external action.
• A new European External Action Service will provide back up and support to the High Representative.
• A single legal personality for the Union will strengthen the Union's negotiating power, making it more effective on the world stage and a more visible partner for third countries and international organisations.
• Progress in European Security and Defence Policy will preserve special decision-making arrangements but also pave the way towards reinforced cooperation amongst a smaller group of Member States.

Citizens' summary

Public consultation – How should the new European citizens' initiative work?

WHAT'S THE ISSUE?

• The Lisbon treaty introduces a new form of public participation in EU politics – the European citizens' initiative enables the public to call on the European Commission to bring forward new legislation.
• Before the public can start exercising this new right, a few ground rules and procedures have to be laid down – in an EU regulation.
• Those rules and procedures must first be discussed with the people who will be using the initiative.

WHAT'S THE PURPOSE OF THE PUBLIC CONSULTATION?

• It's an opportunity for individuals, groups, businesses and public authorities to say how they think the citizens' initiative should work in practice.
• The Green Paper introducing the consultation provides some background and asks some key questions about legal, administrative and practical issues.
• The Commission will take account of comments from the consultation when it drafts the regulation governing citizens' initiatives.

WHAT ARE THE KEY ISSUES IN THE CONSULTATION?

The broad features of citizens' initiatives are already laid down in the Lisbon treaty - namely that they must:

• have at least 1 million signatories, from a significant number of EU countries
• concern a policy area where the Commission has powers to act…
• and an issue for which people think an EU law is needed to implement the EU Treaties.

This consultation is about how to make these features operational and how to deal with a number of additional questions not covered in the treaty:

• minimum number of EU countries signatories must come from
• minimum number of signatories per country
• minimum age of signatories
• form and wording of a citizens' initiative
• rules on collecting, verifying and authenticating signatures
• time limit for collecting signatures
• how to officially register initiatives
• rules on transparency and funding (applicable to organisers)
• possible time limit for Commission response
• what to do when there are several initiatives on a single issue

A Copy of the Citzen's Summary may be downloaded from this link.

The anatomy of an enviromentally friendly large format digital printing project

Street Art

Street painting, the ancient art of the Mediterranean. Italians call the artists, the 'madonnari' and came about as religious drawings outside of churches often depicting the Virgin Mary, or Madonna.

In the UK these type of artists are known as screevers, or street chalk artists.

Originally derived from Anamorphic art, which dates back to Leonardo da Vinci's works of art which are the earliest examples of perspective anamorphism.

Today, this art form has been responsible for some of the best and imaginative 3d pastel drawings ever to grace sidewalks of the modern world.

Pavement Artists

A number of top 3d street artists make their mark in this form of art, names such as Kurt Wenner, Edgar Mueller and Julian beever spring to mind.

Kurt Wenner

You can often see the works of old classic Renaissance masters, reproduced in 3d by artists like Kurt Wenner, whose 3d street paintings have an almost surreal feel to them, amazingly so.

Wenner is known as possibly the best anamorphic street artist of modern times.

Many think that street painting is unparralelled as an art form and the saddest part is that a street painting is hardly, if ever, a permament fixture and will often be washed away or trodden on by passers by within a day or 2 and will be nothing but a fleeting glimpse of a moment.

Wenner says that this art form is like a symphony, its there to experience for a moment then after the music is gone, all you have left is a memory.

The project

This particular project however, will be a little but more than a fleeting glimpse of what this artist can achieve and combined with an enviroenmentally friendly printing solution and a message, It's aim will be to be longer lasting then a street drawing.

Eco-Friendly Printing requirements

Despite and international standard for eco-friendly or enviromentally friendly goods or services, the idea or notion is to support the claims that service providers and or good manufacturers are supplying goods or services that are leaving a much smaller carbin footprint, emitting less greenhouse gases, using less energy to produce, using less raw materials or produce a product or material that is not only sustainable, but enviromentally friendly when having to dispose of them.

This is turn is to assist with climate change and global warming.

Project Overview

Joining forces with a world reknowned artist, and an internationally acclaimed organization to get a message across while providing an eco-friendly printed solution is not an easy feat.

However as a benchmark, it has to date been a wonderful excercise to be able to stretch our abilities and offer any form of printed solution that is noted as being "green" or environmentally friendly.

Eco Friendly Print offerings

We will now be able to offer any form printed banners, point of sale materials and exhibition materials that fall in line with European eco-friendly needs and requirments.

We will be able to print on substrates such as the Evergreen range offered by Dickson's coatings to produce massive banners to get your messages across.

If you want to put up a huge banner to engage your target audience but want it to be enviromentally friendly, then we can assist.

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