30 young Mediterranean leaders to implement environmental campaign

AMMAN — Thirty young civil society leaders will carry out the “10 Days for the Mediterranean” campaign, comprising 30 initiatives taking place from June 1 to 30 in the Southern Mediterranean to raise awareness on ecological issues.

The campaign is being developed and supported by the EU-funded “Med Dialogue” for Rights and Equality Programme in 10 South Mediterranean countries, including Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Palestine, Tunisia and Syria, according to an EU statement.

The young leaders took part in the first Med Dialogue Fellows Boot Camp on the topic of addressing ecological challenges in the Mediterranean in January 2020, the statement said. They will carry out local awareness-raising campaigns, trainings and advocacy actions to help promote sustainable practices and environmental protection measures around four main themes: Climate change, agroecology and forests, plastic waste and marine pollution.

“10 Days for the Mediterranean represents the far-reaching impact of civil society actors when they move as one mass to address common challenges across the Mediterranean region,” said Gianluca Solera, the team leader of Med Dialogue, in the statement. 

“In this particular case, this common action promotes essential and basic practices to protect the environment, inform and mobilise citizens and contribute to reducing the sprouting effects of climate change,” she added.

Med Dialogue for Rights and Equality is a three-year (2019-2022) EU-funded Technical Assistance regional programme with the overall objective of strengthening the role of civil society organisations active on a regional scale in building sustainable development, regional cohesion and social resilience, as well as in influencing policy-making in the Southern Neighborhood and the Euro-Mediterranean Space.

This common action framework is the product of a “unique collaborative process” of debate, capacity building and mentoring for young civil society actors on the environmental and ecological challenges that threaten the Mediterranean region, according to the statement.