Mediterranean Seagrass Workshop—2009

Workshop final program and full proceedings available to download (see links in sidebar menu)

After the first MSW06, successfully held in Malta in 2006, we are announcing the second MSW09 which will take a place in Croatia (Hvar, Islad of Hvar) in September 2009.

The Mediterranean Sea is a unique and vulnerable ecoregion, where the status of the environment is largely dependent on coastal development, and where environmental degradation has become a major concern. The ecoregion is renowned for its climate, for the common sea that separates and links three continents, for its cultural heritage and landscapes, and for the populations’ feeling of ‘belonging to the Mediterranean world’. This is also one of the planet’s biodiversity hot spots, where many of the species present are endemic.

This region is undergoing dramatic changes, which have triggered the implementation of a number of conservation and protection actions. Although a series of actions have been taken towards the concept of sustainable development, such as the Barcelona Convention for the Protection of the Mediterranean Sea against Pollution (1976) and the Mediterranean Commission on Sustainable Development (1995), actions based on these have so far been limited. Thus, there is the need to strengthen coastal policies through the implementation of Mediterranean and national sustainable development strategies.

In this scenario, seagrasses are no exception. The long evolutionary history of seagrasses is now challenged by changes, whether human-induced or naturally occurring (including climate change). Worldwide, several scientific reviews have provided evidence of a global trend of seagrass decline and some regional evidence for the Mediterranean is now available. To obtain useful information on seagrass trends, several monitoring programs have been implemented and few attempts of restoration and conservation. However, we are still far from a complete understanding of seagrass change trajectories for the Mediterranean Region and which management measures should be implemented.

The Mediterranean Seagrass Workshop —MSW '09— will provide a forum for discussion among scientists from all Mediterranean countries and all stakeholders that are currently involved in implementing protection and conservation measures for the Mediterranean basin to address these issues. The MSW ’06 was successful to draw participants from 13 Mediterranean countries and some European and international participants. Particularly, efforts were focused on providing the opportunity to Northern African scientists to attend, a goal that will be receive priority at MSW ’09. In addition, the MSW ’09 intends to reach out to those countries that belong to the Mediterranean ecoregion, including those facing the Atlantic Ocean (Portugal, Morocco, etc). This would allow better cooperation within the Mediterranean networks and ongoing research and to exchange management practices among the extended community.