The development of a regional approach to climate change adaptation advances in the Mediterranean

The Mediterranean region has been assessed by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as one of the most vulnerable region to the impacts of climate change.

Leading experts with extensive expertise and experiences in different aspects of climate change adaptation met in Athens on 11-12 March 2015, for the second meeting of the Advisory Panel to the Strategic Framework for the Adaptation of the Mediterranean Marine and Coastal Areas to Climate Change (the Framework).

The overall objective of the Framework is to identify and develop a regional approach to climate change adaptation in the Mediterranean to increase the resilience of its marine and coastal ecosystems, infrastructure and communities to climate change. "Climate change is a slow but certain process that will affect all aspects of life in the whole Mediterranean. It is crucial that adaptation to climate change starts now in the region and is done in a coordinated manner at country level to minimize the negative effects and turn positive effects into opportunities”, said Michael Tsimplis, Professor in Oceanography and Maritime Law at the University of Southampton in the UK.
Some Mediterranean countries lack effective coordinated policies for climate change adaptation. The projected impacts including water scarcity and more frequent and severe droughts may impede economic growth. “Effective climate change adaptation policies and measures may represent opportunities to guide the economic development of the region in a more sustainable direction. Some international initiatives have been started in the field of climate change adaptation and sustainable development with a focus on South Europe, Mediterranean and North Africa, but in the future a shared regional approach can be beneficial in producing more effective adaptation measures for marine and coastal areas” said Sergio Castellari, Senior scientist at the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC), in Italy. 

During the second meeting of the Advisory Panel, the Framework was discussed and restructured aiming at a consistent and relevant strategy for the Mediterranean countries. A new amended version of the draft framework will be prepared in view of submitting it to for adoption by the Contracting Parties to the Barcelona Convention at their 19th meeting in February 2016.