Story | 07 7月, 2016

Extensive update process underway on Mediterranean biodiversity

A new initiative promoted by the Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) to develop an extensive update to all species, sites and conservation issues in the Mediterranean region has been recently launched.

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Site and Corridor Outcomes for the Mediterranean Basin Hotspot according to previous CEPF Ecosystem Profile.

Photo: © CEPF

All stakeholders in the Mediterranean will be invited to participate in the updating of the Ecosystem Profile for the region. The Ecosystem Profile is an extensive document describing the conservation status of the region, covering socio-economic issues, threats to biodiversity and all the existing data on flora and fauna. 

The CEPF investment in the Mediterranean basin hotspot began in 2010-2011 with the creation of the first Ecosystem Profile, developed through an extensive stakeholders consultation, that described the conservation status of the region, covering socio-economic issues, threats to biodiversity and all the existing data on flora and fauna.

Many changes have occurred in the six years since the Ecosystem Profile for the Mediterranean region was prepared. The update of the Ecosystem Profile is a need to create a platform for funders interested in making grants to civil society groups working in the Mediterranean basin in the coming years, and to align well with existing investment by government and other donors in the region.

The update of the ecosystem profile will be used to create the new investment strategy for CEPF’s second phase of investment from 2017. The updated Ecosystem Profile is both a document and a process. In short, the result will be a snapshot of the hotspot in 2016 that will describe the current state of, and threats to biodiversity and the capacity of civil society to engage as a partner in conservation.

This revision process will be led by BirdLife International in collaboration with consortium of partners. The IUCN will participate along with Tour du Valat, Conservatoire du Littoral, and regional and national BirdLife Partners.

The update has been made possible through the support of the MAVA Foundation, Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and CEPF. The CEPF is a joint initiative of l’Agence Française de Développement (AFD), Conservation International (CI), the European Union, the Global Environment Facility (GEF), the Government of Japan, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, and the World Bank. Additional support in the Mediterranean Basin is provided by the MAVA Foundation.

For further information: Marcos Valderrábano