Addressing the impacts of Climate Variability and Change at Parliamentarian level in the Mediterranean
Climate
variability and change would have adverse impacts in the Mediterranean.
This was the trigger for the Regional Workshop for Members of Parliaments on Climate Variability and Change in the Mediterranean Coastal Area that was held in Athens on 13 and 14 November under the umbrella of the MedPartnership project.
Organized by the GWP-MED and MIO–ECSDE, the two-day Workshop aimed to mobilize a more active engagement from the MPs and enhance their role for shaping related policies and promoting priority action at regional and national levels.
The workshop included a session with the Special Permanent Committee on Environmental Protection of the Hellenic Parliament with members of the Mediterranean countries. MPs were briefed about regional initiatives and programmes on the issue in the Mediterranean as well as their linkages with Water and Environment programmes.
According to recent studies, serious impacts are expected to emerge from climate variability and change threats in the Mediterranean such as sea level rise, overall decrease in precipitation and recurrent and persistent droughts. Such phenomena not only impact the natural environment and biodiversity of the Region but also the provision of ecosystem services and goods on which people’s livelihoods depend. These impacts will be intensively felt particularly in the Mediterranean coastal zone.
Participants to the workshop highlighted the need for stronger coordination among stakeholders, and thorough review of regional policy frameworks, with a focus on the link between climate change and health. they all agreed on the need to establish an information platform for all the many processes, meeting, and reports to help policy makers keep track and ensure no overlap.
“It is about time we all perform as one choir instead of single singers” said Lorenzo Paolo Galbiati, The MedPartnership project manager, encouraging all stakeholders to coordinate their moves.
The Workshop comes within the GEF UNEP/MAP Project on ‘Integration of climatic variability and change into national strategies to implement the ICZM Protocol in the Mediterranean’ (Climate Variability Project) which is jointly implemented by UNEP/MAP through the MedPartnership project, Plan Bleu, PAP/RAC and GWP-Med.
