NEWSLETTER February 2015 Xxxxxx xxxx www.discoverdinarides.com WWF Mediterranean Mediterranean echo Newsletter of the WWF Mediterranean Programme February 2015 ADRIA S PARKS UNITE IN NETWORK OF PROTECTED AREAS WWF Mediterranean is pleased to announce the official establishment of the regional association Parks Dinarides - network of protected areas of Dinarides, a major result for the WWF Dinaric Arc Parks project. In December representatives of 36 protected areas from the Adria region elected the president and governing council of the Association which will facilitate the exchange and development of mutual projects and promotion. This follows on from the decisive step taken at the 3rd Dinaric Arc Parks International Conference, held in Brijuni National Park, Croatia, in October, which was brought to a successful close with the signing of an agreement by 60 parks committing to take part in Parks Dinarides. Gathering 150 people from 13 countries, the conference focused on how protected areas can safeguard the region s natural capital and generate benefits for people. The three-day event was dominated by the topic of sustainable tourism in protected areas. The newly-elected president of the Europarc Federation, Ignace Schops, Green Nobel Prize winner and Al Gore s ambassador, inspired participants with his ideas for improving the parks they work in. WWF is optimistic that the Parks Dinarides Association will become an important vehicle for regional cooperation, bringing out the best in the protected areas of the region and helping them work together to conserve a common heritage. Leon Kebe, Dinaric Arc Parks project manager WWF Mediterranean Kasandra-Zorica Ivanić, WWF Conservation Officer, presents values of protected areas at the 3rd Dinaric Arc Parks conference. See www.discoverdinarides.com/en/. Extensive PAs benefit assessment demonstrates value of nature WWF recently completed a protected areas benefit assessment in 58 parks, representing over 50% of all protected territory in the Dinaric Arc. It has yielded a huge dataset on the wider benefits that protected areas provide. The parks greatest economic resources are tourism, water, forests and jobs. This assessment has offered park managers new insight into stakeholders perceptions of real park values. PA benefit assessments provide arguments for better protection and create dialogue with resource use sectors, politicians and businesses. Park manages will decide how best to use the assessment findings: to reflect on the potential for economic development in their management plans; to communicate positive values to stakeholders; to create or improve park interpretation and education programmes. 1
Build a future for Mediterranean landscapes 5 Adria PAs win European Charter for Sustainable Tourism Five Adria protected areas won the European Charter for Sustainable Tourism in PAs last December. The Charter awarded to Una National Park (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Lonjsko Polje and Medvednica Nature Parks (Croatia), Fruška Gora National Park and Gornje Podunavlje Special Nature Reserve (Serbia) is awarded by the Europarc Federation. The award is important because it helps develop and establish ties between various segments of society. Only 131 of over 28,000 protected areas in the EU have so far won this recognition. http://bit.ly/1fxnlkd Mediterranean forests: some questions Mediterranean forests are crucial to the wellbeing of around 460 million people. Although much has been said about the role tropical forests and deforestation are playing in climate change at a global level, much less is known about Mediterranean forests. How important are they to sustainable development? How is the degradation of forests connected to the increased frequency of water scarcity and drought events in the Mediterranean? In what ways does Mediterranean forest cover protect us from extreme weather events? These are crucial questions which WWF is addressing so that we can more effectively protect remaining Mediterranean forests and better integrate their conservation in the new path towards a sustainable planet. i.pratesi@wwf.it Portugal Forest certification improves the condition of streams The WWF Green Heart of Cork project in Portugal promotes the sustainable management of cork oak landscapes through financial incentives to cork oak landowners for adhering to Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certification. Well-managed cork oak landscapes provide valuable ecosystem services including longterm carbon storage. Researchers within the project have recently found that certification positively affects the ecological condition of streams in Mediterranean evergreen oak woodlands. In areas under forest certification, managers and landowners comply with management practices that require them to remove or reduce the main causes of stream degradation, allowing riparian habitats to recover. Within landscapes with large and increasing areas under forest certification these positive effects are likely to spread across the hydrographic network. mbugalho@wwfmedpo.org Did you know...? Cork is the 6th most significant non-timber forest product globally. Portugal is the country with the largest area of cork oak, producing 50% of the world s cork. By November 2014 there were 349,345 hectares of certified forests in Portugal which include around 110,000ha of cork oak forests. See the campaign for our flagship project in Portugal on cork forests for Earth Hour 2015 http://bit.ly/1c4qpua H. Jungius / WWF Wild Wonders of Europe /S. Widstrand / WWF 2
Build a future for Mediterranean landscapes WWF mediterranean Green jobs in Tunisia WWF is running an important project on green jobs in northwest Tunisia, which will launch sustainable small local businesses directly related to 3 protected areas*. The businesses will be led by young unemployed graduates from the targeted regions, and should involve local people. More than 60 young people were chosen to take part in a training session in the small village of Ain Draham in January. Led by an ecotourism expert from Jordan, participants explored Bni Mtir, a unique forestry village, and were introduced to some basic rules for tour guides. This was the second training session in a process which will select and train a group of the candidates to be the leaders of green businesses. mbenabdelkrim@wwftunis.org * Funded by the Swiss Foundation DROSOS, the project aims to create small businesses in 3 PAs: Cap Serrat/Cap Negro, Nefza; Oued Zen, Ain Draham; El Feija, Ghardimaou. Food waste: shocking facts and figures We know that many of the things we do using a car, heating and cooling our buildings contribute to greenhouse gas emissions. It is less common knowledge, however, that the food we produce is responsible for around 30% of the total emissions resulting from human activity, greater than those generated by the entire global transport and electricity sectors. Our food is one of the primary causes of climate change. Can we do anything about it? Of course we can, beginning with the huge quantity of food we waste. The figures are shocking. Currently around 952 million people in the world suffer from hunger. More than 7 million children die each year of starvation. The volume of edible food wasted globally each year is estimated at 1.3 billion tonnes enough to feed around 3 billion people. The carbon footprint of food wastage is estimated at 3.3 billion tonnes of CO2 emissions (including emissions resulting from deforestation and land-use change) per year. The total volume of water (250km 3 ) used each year to produce food that is wasted is equivalent to three times the volume of Lake Geneva. Almost 30% (1.4 billion hectares of land) of the world s agricultural area is used annually to produce food that is lost or wasted. Imagine leaving the supermarket with 10 bags of shopping and throwing 3 of them directly into the rubbish bin. This is what happens, effectively, every day throughout the world. In many countries of the Mediterranean more than 1 million tonnes of food is wasted every year. Food is the timely central theme of the 2015 Milan Universal Exposition Feeding the Planet, Energy for Life. In the Mediterranean, WWF is deeply involved in this area with the OnePlanetFood programme and with initiatives concerning the environmental impact of food supply chains, their unsustainability, how we might measure their impact on the planet s biodiversity. Expo 2015 is a unique opportunity for us to reflect on the world s plight and search for ways to bring about a reversal of the current situation. This is the change that WWF, as a civil society participant at Expo 2015, would like to inspire. www.oneplanetfood.info K. Havia / WWF-Finland 3
Secure Mediterranean water resources Hundreds meet for Ramsar in Africa More than 100 participants from 47 African countries and 10 international organisations met for the Ramsar Regional Preparation COP Meeting for Africa, held in Hammamet, Tunisia, in November. Between discussions on wetlands conservation, participants enjoyed a visit to WWF s education and information centre on Tunisian Wetlands. The community accreditation Ramsar City Label, promoted by WWF, was discussed and adopted by the African countries, and will be among the resolutions presented during the 12th Conference of Parties in June. fmaamouri@wwftunis.org NGOs form wetland conservation network The MedWet Civil Society Network was officially launched at the Ramsar Regional Meeting for Africa in November. 18 NGOs from Algeria, Morocco and Tunisia agreed to work together to promote the conservation and wise use of priority selected wetlands and signed a Charter of commitment. gtrabelsi@wwftunis.org E-flow presented for the first time in Morocco For the first time in Morocco the concept of ecological flow was presented to water managers, along with strategies to build their knowledge of this approach to freshwater management. At a workshop organized by WWF, in October, representatives of public institutions, dam managers and researchers studied the legal and institutional basis for introducing e-flow to Moroccan legislation, methods of implementation and the feasibility for the application of e-flow to the Sebou basin. melmadani@wwfmedpo.org WWF Playground During the latest Belgrade Flower Festival more than 100 curious youngsters learned about the importance of the water footprint, biodiversity and endangered species. While children did experiments with water, saved fish from a maze of pollution and danced with water lilies, their parents were introduced to the undiscovered world of Dinaric Arc Parks, the Amazon of Europe, and much more. astamenkovic@wwfdcp.org Hutovo Blato and the Neretva river delta could be lost forever Over the last 35 years, the water level at Hutovo Blato Nature Park in Bosnia and Herzegovina has decreased by 50% due to hydropower developments in the Neretva river basin to which it is connected. Bird populations have decreased by over 30%. WWF presented the Action plan for the revitalization of ecosystems of Hutovo Blato in October to raise awareness of the gravity of the situation and to put forward the urgent concrete actions needed to prevent this disaster. zmateljak@wwfmedpo.org World wetlands day For World Wetlands Day (2 February) WWF organised a series of events throughout the Adria region to draw attention to the exceptional importance of wetlands for nature and society. Wetlands protect us from devastating floods, clean our water and provide resources and benefits. Over the past century we have drained and lost more than 90% of wetland habitats in Europe. The Dinaric Arc is no exception, although there are still several crucially important wetlands that need to be protected. The Mura-Drava-Danube Biosphere Reserve (Croatia-Serbia), Livansko polje Ramsar site (BiH), Hutovo Blato Nature Park (BiH) and Skadar Lake National Park (Montenegro) need sustainable management and reliable sources of finance. These wetlands are the hubs of biodiversity in the region and have huge ecotourism potential for local people. bstojanovic@wwfmedpo.org a. Stamenkovic / wwf 4
Equip Mediterranean ecosystems to adapt to climate change m. ben abdelkrim / wwf sustainable tourism growing in morocco Mass tourism is one of the main causes of pollution in the Mediterranean, the world s leading tourist destination with over 300 million tourists per year. The Horizon 2020 Initiative, a major EU Research and Innovation programme, tackles the main sources of pollution, including tourism, towards significantly reducing pollution in the Mediterranean by the year 2020. Tourism occupies a prominent place in Morocco s economic and financial structure, as the second largest contributor to the national GDP and second job creator. Such strategic importance accounts for Morocco s commitment to achieving the high environmental standards required by international visitors, to become the leading destination in the region. WWF is working in Morocco with an increasing number of local tour operators, travel agencies, and hotels who have begun to apply truly dedicated ecological and sustainable principles and practices with the support of the government. rmancini@atw-wwf.org Local sustainable development in Chefchaouen As part of the capacity building programme for achieving H2020 objectives, WWF organized a study visit to the National Association of Sheep and Goat Cheese (pictured above) in Chefchaouen. The Association defends locally traditional livestock and cheese production techniques and is a good example of sustainable tourism, in line with the principles of preservation, conservation, enhancement and value of local cultural heritage. Participants from Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Palestine, Jordan and Algeria spent 3 days studying the legislation and government policies which promote sustainable tourism and have had a positive economic impact on Chefchaouen s local communities. They also discussed challenges and opportunities for sustainable tourism in their own countries, developing professional networks and building common activities to replicate the Moroccan experience. mbenabdelkrim@wwftunis.org Solar power in Mura-Drava-Danube Through cooperation between WWF and one of the world s leading producers of solar panels, five solar power plants were donated to protected areas in Europe, one of them to the Transboundary Biosphere Reserve Mura-Drava- Danube. The plant will produce enough energy to power the needs of people working on the Reserve and will result in savings in electricity costs. The solar power plant will also be used to show visitors and the local community the benefits of sustainable and local electricity production. ikorn@wwfmedpo.org Global agreement on climate change Research proves that climate change is occurring, human activities are causing it, and it is hitting ecosystems and affecting people in every corner of the globe. After 20 years of negotiations and increasing emissions, it is time to act. Over the last 15 months, as part of our global campaign on energy Seize Your Power WWF has been asking governments and financial institutions to phase out fossil fuels and invest in renewable energy. Events such as the people s climate march last September, making history as the largest public movement ever on climate change, will keep up international momentum for tackling the climate crisis in the run-up to a global deal being agreed in Paris later in 2015. wwf.panda.org/what_we_do/ footprint/climate_carbon_energy P. Jelinek / WWF Germany 5
Equip Mediterranean ecosystems to adapt to climate change National Geographic Stock /John Burcham / WWF Energy roadmaps towards sustainability WWF and other SHAAMS project* partners have called on governments and decision makers to move faster towards the use of renewable sources and in particular solar energy. To support this process, WWF is working with a team of experts to create energy roadmaps which identify the political, legislative, institutional and financial frameworks most suitable for promoting the effective development of solar energy. WWF recently worked with stakeholders on developing national energy roadmaps in Lebanon, Egypt and Jordan, which were presented and discussed in each country between October and December. The final version of the energy roadmaps, including all feedback and input from stakeholders, will Why we are here To stop the degradation of the planet s natural environment and to build a future in which humans live in harmony with nature. mediterranean.panda.org SHAAMS and Earth Hour 1986 Panda symbol WWF - World Wide Fund for Nature WWF Registered Trademark be formally endorsed by the end of March. This is a major achievement, representing a common vision for each country in the development of renewable energy sources, in particular solar. Most important, the roadmaps detail what needs to be done to increase the use of renewable energy. rmancini@atw-wwf.org In 2014 the SHAAMS project joined Earth Hour, the WWF event that mobilizes hundreds of millions of people across the world every year. For Earth Hour 2015, the SHAAMS project team is working with partners and schools in Spain, Italy, Egypt, Lebanon and Jordan organizing workshops and activities related to solar energy. As part of Earth Hour, students will be invited to join a video competition Use Your Power, to engage young filmmakers in producing innovative short films which show the advantages of solar energy and its uses in everyday life. cmenard@wwfmedpo.org * SHAAMS (Strategic Hubs for the Acceleration of the Mediterranean Solar Sector) seeks to establish governance solutions identifying innovative, transferable and sustainable solar energy policies. The SHAAMS project promotes the active participation of public administration bodies, research centres, private firms and civil society organizations. mediterranean programme february 2015 mediterranean.panda.org 6