Half a hundred associations and entities have conveyed to the Cabildo of Lanzarote their interest in being part of the Governing Board of the Biosphere Reserve Council, which is in the process of being constituted. The members of this institutional body are appointed for a period of four years, which corresponds to the four-year political term and are renewed when the Island Corporation does so, after the local and regional elections.
On this occasion, the number of applicants has reached a historical record and shows the participatory will and commitment of the associative movement of Lanzarote to ensure the conservation of island biodiversity and the recovery of environmental quality levels, disseminate natural and cultural heritage and promote and implement sustainable development proposals.
After the deadline for submitting proposals, it is up to the entities that share interests and objectives to agree on which person will represent all the other entities, in a process of conversation and search for consensus that contains the spirit that encourages the Reserve Council since its constitution in 1996. For this, an electoral process is carried out that began on Tuesday, October 17 and will culminate with the call for the constitutive session, scheduled for November 10.
Neighborhood, environmental, business, tourism, fishing, agricultural, professional associations, immigrant groups and NGOs have representation on the Council as spokespersons for their respective sectors, to express themselves on any of the issues of general interest that are brought to debate and vote.
Councilors of the Government, representatives of the other political groups, municipalities of the island, Regional Executive, Ministry of the Environment, César Manrique Foundation, UNESCO MaB Program and universities of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria and La Laguna, designated by their respective competent bodies, also integrate this advisory forum.
The president of the Cabildo, Oswaldo Betancort, and the councilor responsible for the area, Samuel Martín, have publicly stated on several occasions their willingness to promote public discussion within the Council and to reinforce its function as a space for contrasting opinions, debate and multidisciplinary advice for decision-making that concerns citizens as a whole.
