Interreg Euro-MED – StrategyMedFor

Despite the increase in Mediterranean forest cover in recent decades, these forests remain under pressure and require urgent action to increase their resilience to climate change and restore their biodiversity. Climate change, biodiversity loss, wildfires and other human pressures are increasingly affecting the quality, integrity, distribution and cover of forest ecosystems, with consequences for local communities and livelihoods.

StrategyMedFor has developed a Forward-looking Framework for Sustainable Management of Forests in the Mediterranean region, supported by common criteria and indicators, geospatial tools and methodologies to guide forest protection, restoration and climate resilience. Following its development and testing in three pilot territories, the project is now entering a Transfer phase, bringing the Framework and its toolbox to four new pilot territories in Croatia, Montenegro, Albania and Slovenia. Through knowledge exchange, capacity building and collaboration with local stakeholders, StrategyMedFor will support the practical adaptation and uptake of these tools and their wider replication beyond the pilot territories.

The Mediterranean basin is the third-richest hotspot in the world in terms of plant biodiversity and one of the greatest sources of endemic plants on Earth (Mittermeier et al. 2004; IUCN, 2008). Forest and wooded lands are, at the same time, one of the most threatened ecosystems in the Mediterranean because of the large population concentration and the high pressure from human activities (FAO and Plan Bleu, 2018), such as tourism, urbanization, agriculture, etc (Dernegi, D. 2010).

Moreover, the Mediterranean is one of the most affected regions by climate change (IPCC, 2021). Only 5% of natural vegetation in the Mediterranean basin remains (FAO and UNEP, 2020), the lowest of any biodiversity hotspot. Many international agreements (i.e. the Convention on Biological Diversity –CBD–; United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change –UNFCCC– or the European Green Deal) point out the need of preserving and restoring forests to tackle the Sustainable development Goals –SDG–, the EU forest strategy and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030 .

StrategyMedFor’s mission is part of the Natural Heritage Mission of the Interreg Euro-MED Programme focused on protecting, restoring and valorising the natural resources of the Euro-Mediterranean area.