After the careful study and preparation phases, ENSERES begins to operate concretely in the two pilot sites of Sfax and Tyre. Thanks to the funding provided by the ENI CBC MED project, several actions have been selected that will allow local civil society organizations to promote the management and sustainable development of the SPAMIs (Specially Protected Areas of Mediterranean Importance) of these two splendid natural areas in Tunisia and Lebanon. The Sfax municipality complex and the Tyre Nature Reserve are home to numerous plant and animal species, and despite the strong impact of human activities they are an important source of ecosystem services. The sub-grants represent the first step for an integrated management of these protected environmental areas, capable of balancing the needs of the environment and development.

As for the Sfax area, the first funding will be dedicated to the Karkennah Islands. An awareness campaign against pollution will be organized, and accompanied by a cleaning and collection program on the most popular beaches. Protagonists of the operation will be young university students who, thanks to the contribution provided by the project, will be able to improve their economic conditions.

The second project will instead affect the urban park of Thyna and the very important Ramsar site that surrounds it. The creation of a fitness path will go along with awareness campaigns on the environmental value of ponds and marshes, cultural performances in the park theater and a series of visits to the Roman archaeological site of Thyna.

From the ponds we move to the port of Sfax with the third initiative, whose efforts will be focused on the creation of a sustainable and integrated waste management process that will involve public and private actors, fishermen, users and environmental associations. Sustainability also characterizes the program dedicated to the Kneiss archipelago. For these islands, over the next 10 months, a plan will be drawn up to strengthen the tourist offer and make it compatible with the needs of the environment. Sustainable fishing, birdwatching and biking will be the fundamental points of a path built for physical well-being and the rediscovery of natural beauty. In the Kneiss Islands, another funding will be used to balance mussel fishing, seriously damaged by over-harvesting, and the rights of women, traditionally engaged in this peculiar art of “walk-fishing”. The constant control of the stocks of clams and groover razor shells, the regulation of harvesting and the introduction of new tools will allow both the conservation of marine fauna and the protection of the rights of women, who find in this activity a way to emancipation. 

Two are the subgrants that will affect the Tyre Nature Reserve in Lebanon. The first will be entirely dedicated to raising the awareness among the population, the first step in planning, for such an important environmental, historical and cultural site, a tourism paradigm based on sustainability. This approach will be immediately implemented with the second loan, which aims to build around the ancient springs of Ras el-Ein a virtuous circuit where scientific research and awareness of public and private stakeholders protect the ecosystem services offered by the ancient Phoenician and Roman springs, otherwise threatened by pollution.