The Mediterranean, one of the most sensitive area to climate change
The Mediterranean, cradle of our modern civilizations and subject to growing geopolitical issues, is also one of the most sensitive area to pollution of all types and to ongoing climate change. The most recent scientific results should
be at the basis of a realistic policy of sustainable development to ensure the stability of the Mediterranean countries.
Since the adoption 40 years ago of the Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP) under the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and the creation of the Union for the Mediterranean 10 years ago, scientific research, such as MISTRALS and MedCLIVAR, has been organized to understand the mechanisms involved in the climate and environmental changes in the Mediterranean and to provide answers to the questions of our societies. More recently, in 2015, a synthesis effort was initiated within a network of experts covering the whole of the Mediterranean (MedECC) to make these scientific results accessible and useful to decision-makers.
An ambitious conference for Mediterranean decision-makers
We are proud to organize a major three-day conference in 2020 for all decision-makers of the Mediterranean countries. Inspired by the achievements of science-policy interfaces such as the IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change), from which it takes up several objectives, this conference will be an opportunity to review existing scientific knowledge and the issues that the Mediterranean environment has to face in the decades to come.
Discussing climate and environmental issues in the Mediterranean
The conference will cover a broad range of topics, including : evolution of the Mediterranean climate in the 21st century and its impacts on the environment, extreme events (floods, heat waves, marine submersions), water resources management and amplification of droughts, links between pollution and health, fluxes of contaminants from water, air and soil into living organisms, proliferation of invasive species on land and at sea and loss of biodiversity.
Strengthening the dialogue between decision-makers and scientists
On the occasion of the release of the new Report on the state of the environment and development in the Mediterranean, coordinated by the Plan Bleu as part of the Mediterranean Action Plan (MAP / UNEP), this conference will be the opportunity to review current knowledge available to stakeholders, and to open a dialog between decision-makers and scientists on climate and environmental issues in the Mediterranean.
Decision-makers and scientists will be able to discuss the importance and achievements of European (such as the Marine Strategy Framework Directive - DCSMM) and regional (such as the Barcelona Convention) agreements on the protection of the marine and coastal environment of the Mediterranean, as well as major international programs (PRIMA, BLUE-MED, etc.) aimed at the adoption of sustainable practices and the emergence of innovative technologies for sustainable and harmonious development in the Mediterranean.
