Enalia Physis and CEF in Palermo for the 1st BlueMissionMed Stakeholder Forum
We are very proud of Rebecca Katsaris who travelled a few days ago to Palermo, Italy, representing Enalia Physis Environmental Research Center and the Cyprus Environment Foundation (CEF) at a very special event: The 𝟭𝘀𝘁 𝗕𝗹𝘂𝗲𝗠𝗶𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗠𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝘂𝗺 and the Mission ‘Restore our Ocean and waters by 2030’- The Mediterranean lighthouse in action. The high-level event was organised by the European Commission in close cooperation with the Italian government, the Sicily Region, and the University of Palermo, with the support of the BlueMissionMed Co-ordination and Support Action.
Rebecca had a couple of fruitful and intense days of discussions, co-creation and networking among Mediterranean stakeholders, discovering many inspirational case studies and taking the opportunity to really see how everyone will be setting the scene for the next actions of the 𝗠𝗲𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗟𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲. During the conference, Rebecca had the chance to present the project currently running since October 2022 and funded by the CEF: “𝙄𝙣𝙘𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙚 𝙀𝙣𝙫𝙞𝙧𝙤𝙣𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝘼𝙬𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙣𝙚𝙨𝙨 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙜𝙝 𝙏𝙝𝙚 𝘾𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝘼𝙧𝙩𝙨”. More specifically, Rebecca explained how the Creative Arts can lead young children to gain a deeper understanding on why the marine life is essential, how to better comprehend the importance of protecting this planet on which we live, and how the ocean and humans are, essentially, inextricably interconnected.
The conference was also attended by the Sicily Environment Fund’s (SEF) Communications Manager, Ambra Messina. Just as CEF, SEF, is one of the 19 local foundations of the Conservation Collective’s (CC) global networking working to solve global issues through local solutions. Ambra connected with the Rebecca and discussed the possibility of collaborating and spreading the project’s outcomes and developed educational material and methodology in Sicily. Sharing good practices and helping promote local action through the CC’s global network, is at the core of all affiliated foundations’ actions.
Since its beginning, the project has gained tremendous momentum in Cyprus engaging with children from public and private schools. In the course of this project, 20 educational creative workshops and 2 interactive puppetry live music shows were organized. The activities have been working to raise awareness on crucial local marine matters through music, the visual arts, movement, dance, drama and storytelling.
Amongst the project’s greatest achievements is receiving the official recognition of the European Commission. Through this, the European Commission assures that all actions of this project play a key role in delivering against and contributing to one or more of the following Mission Ocean and Waters objectives:
- Protect and restore marine and freshwater ecosystems and biodiversity,in line with the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030
- Prevent and eliminate pollution of our ocean, seas and waters, in line with the EU Action Plan Towards Zero Pollution for Air, Water and Soil
- Make the sustainable blue economy carbon-neutral and circular, in line with the proposed European Climate Law and the holistic vision enshrined in the Sustainable Blue Economy Strategy.
This recognition enables the project to be displayed on a dedicated website for the Mission Charter Actions and includes it in Mission Ocean and Waters materials and tools.
This collaboration is predicted to increase the impact of the activities undertaken under the Mission at basin level and beyond, and raise more awareness.
If you find the project’s mission compelling, contact us and tell us how you can support the project’s next steps through funding or participating in the upcoming project’s activities.
