Thanks to the support provided by the 9 ENSERES subgrants and the partners' mentoring and capacity building processes to accompany the implementation and adoption of selected tools and measures locally for better integrated coastal zone management, this ENSERES interactive workshop held on 21 and 22 June provided an excellent opportunity to tighten links and new partnerships for the benefit of Mediterranean biodiversity.

The wide array of actions implemented by local organizations has increased the visibility of ongoing efforts to endow the pilot sites and collaborating communities including children and youth, women, fishers, civil society organizations and local authorities with new mechanisms to protect our beloved Mediterranean biodiversity and ecosystems. Some of the tools adopted have been tested by ENI CBC MED projects like COMMON and PlasticBusters CAP, and ongoing collaboration with the Interreg Mediterranean project MPA Engage will enhance the capacities to foster citizen science via new monitoring protocols, an example of the different tools available in the ENSERES catalogue.

Amazing photo galleries, interactions among key players and a hint to achievements can be accessed through the ENSERES subgrantees social media posts where you will find communities in action tackling marine pollution, promoting citizens involvement in beach cleaning campaigns, raising environmental awareness and education for sustainability, engaging many different players of all ages in environmentally friendly practices, and promoting better waste disposal and management in Tunisia and Lebanon, where the ENSERES pilot sites are located.

Indeed, a big thank you to all of them for continuing spreading the word that together, we can go further in protecting our environment.  Have a look at the different initiatives and learn about what might be coming next:

• Association for the Continuity of Generations (ACG) – KNEISS SHINING

• AMWAJ of the Environment - LOCAL COMMUNITY OF TYRE AGAINST MARINE LITTER

• Association Féminine de Développement des îles et du littoral (AFDIL)- FAIKA

• Association for Community and Environment (ACE) - ECO-GEOTOURISM

• Association for Preserving the Environment in Tyre (APET) - Ecotourism: an economical and environmental opportunity for Tyre city and TCNR

• Kantara-Save Earth - PLAGES PROPRES KERKENNAH

• Observatoire Régional Ecologique de Sfax (ORES) - TACKLE MARINE POLLUTION

• Sfax El Mezyena - SAVE THEANAE

• The Lebanese Committee to Save Tyre (CLST): INVOLVING STUDENTS IN PRESERVING TYRE

Prior to the workshop, a project Steering Committee meeting was held on 20 June 2023 with project partners SPA RAC, MedCities, ETC-UMA, MedPAN, the MedSea Foundation, TCNR in Lebanon, and the Municipality of Sfax in Tunisia. This was a timely occasion to network, consolidate successes and lessons learned and move forward in the organization of our final transfer and capitalization events in the coming months. So please SAVE the DATES and get prepared for our next milestones, now that our project has been extended until the end of November 2023:

·         Lebanon capitalization event and MedPAN Regional Training Workshop on Shared Governance of Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas - Tyre, 18-21 September 2023

·         Tunisia capitalization and final event - Sfax, 17-19 October 2023

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