RIO DE JANEIRO - Informal waste collectors from throughout Latin America will hold their first congress Jan 20-23 in Brazil, ending as the World Social Forum gets under way in the southern city of Porto Alegre, drawing tens of thousands of activists from around the world.

The First Latin American Congress of Recyclable Waste Gatherers is to take place in Caxias do Sul, near Porto Alegre, and aims to promote the dignity of these workers, whose environmental role is just now beginning to be recognized in some cities.

The congress, organized by the Brazilian national movement of waste collectors, will discuss the creation of an economic solidarity network, the productive and social organization of their activity and the effects of the Free Trade Area of the Americas, which the continent's governments plan to launch after 2005.

HAVANA - Some 3,000 Cuban technicians are being trained in alternative technologies and best practices in refrigeration as part of a national program to reduce and eliminate substances that deplete the Earth's ozone layer.

The courses cover techniques related to soldering, commercial and household refrigeration, and the recovery and recycling of refrigerant substances.

The training program, which covers the entire island, is sponsored by the United Nations Development and Environment programs (UNDP and UNEP).

Coordinating the classes are the Ministry of Science, Technology and Environment and the Ozone Technical Office, providing information about the depletion of this thin atmospheric layer that protects the planet from harmful ultraviolet radiation.

SANTIAGO - The ExpoSaludable health fair, to take place Feb 5-9 in the central Chilean city of Quillota, 100 km northwest of Santiago, will be a showplace for foods and other products of "clean technology", in the context of quality standards established in the country's free trade accords.

As part of the Healthy Foods for the World project, the Expo will exhibit industrial and handmade products alike, and will promote both traditional and communications technology services for engineering and environmental management.

"ExpoSaludable 2003 seeks to highlight the good and the healthy that Chile has to offer through business and micro-enterprise, products, services and initiatives to meet the domestic demand in health and quality of life, and to successfully compete in the demanding international markets," says a communiqué from the municipal government of Quillota, host of the event.