Mediterranean Youth Taskforce activities at the Mediterranean Network Forum

This year, the Mediterranean Facility of the European Forest Institute (EFIMED) organized the first-ever edition of the Mediterranean Network Forum aimed at strengthening collaboration within the EFIMED network. Prior to the event, four preparatory online workshops were held throughout November, to which the Mediterranean Youth Taskforce (MYTF) was invited as the facilitator.

Several MYTF members supported the event by taking on tasks such as minute keeping during the discussions, managing communications about the workshops on social media, facilitating breakout discussions and other activities. The four workshops addressed the key research topics on the Mediterranean Forest Research Agenda 2030 (MFRA 2030).

The Mediterranean Network Forum itself took place from 29 November to 1 December 2022 in Barcelona, Spain. Five MYTF members actively participated in the event. It began on Tuesday morning at the Sant Pau art nouveau site, the headquarters of EFIMED, with opening speeches and introductory presentations by Magda Bou Dagher Kharrat, the principal scientist at EFIMED, and Bart Muys, a member of the Scientific Advisory Board of the European Forest Institute (EFI), who set the scene. After a coffee break and networking session, four leading researchers presented the outcomes of the four preparatory workshops.

In the afternoon, three-hour group debates were held, where the participants discussed the knowledge gaps and action needed to increase the resilience of the Mediterranean forests. These discussions were followed by a social dinner, together with a poster session during which some of the MYTF members presented posters.

On the second day, forum participants went on a field excursion to the Montserrat Natural Park. At the first stop, they witnessed an example of collaborative land management with wildfire prevention as the main objective, involving landowners, forest managers, cattle farmers and the Barcelona Provincial Council (DIBA). At the second stop, the participants visited a local butchers’ cooperative. Sharing costs and know-how increases final benefits for the butchers as well as the overall social capital among stakeholders, which is invaluable.

Finally, the last stop before lunch was a visit to a family-run cheese factory, which relies on local biomass as an energy source for producing cheese. The sheep and goats graze the understory in the surrounding area, which contributes to wildfire prevention while their milk contributes to the farmers’ income.

The last day of the event focused on looking to the future. First, Thierry Gauquelin, professor emeritus at Aix-Marseille University, gave a presentation with the theme “Towards a network of experimental facilities to assess the impact of climate change and management practices on Mediterranean forests,” which was followed by a summary of group discussions from the first day. Each group presented the outcome of their efforts, including identifying knowledge gaps and the actions required to make Mediterranean forests more resilient. The participants then had a chance to rate the priority of each point addressed.

The final lunch officially closed the Mediterranean Network Forum 2022. The Mediterranean Youth Taskforce of Silva Mediterranea would like to express their gratitude to EFIMED for providing the opportunity to actively participate in the forum, and is looking forward to future collaborations.

See the photos of the event here. 

Šimon Hrbek and Leila Rossa Mouawad – Mediterranean Youth Taskforce