Ten years have passed since the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation launched Beyond Plastic Med - BeMed, initiative to fight against plastic pollution in the entire Mediterranean region, jointly developed with Fondation Tara Océan, Surfrider Foundation Europe, the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and MAVA Foundation.
Made of major actors from civil society, science and the business sector, this Association, based in Monaco, is addressed to find effective solutions to counter the presence of marine micro and macro plastics, through three key actions, notably: 1. sustainable financing; 2. stakeholder coordination; 3. sharing of experience and good practices.
Philippe Mondielli, Scientific Director of the Prince Albert II Foundation of Monaco has recently pointed out: « Ten years ago, plastic pollution was already present but it was much less publicised. As part of a call for projects, we received a proposal from Surfrider Europe to organise an international conference on the subject. On this occasion, a strong match was established among the different actors. To continue this effort, we decided to create BeMed ».
Since its establishment, BeMed has been committed to supporting local actors willing to carry on micro-initiatives, launching ten calls for projects to develop 113 projects across the Mediterranean sea and islands (in 2020 and 2024). The project has evolved from a simple idea "together we are stronger" in order to create a community, currently made of 94 organisations pursuing the same objective.
Romain Troublé, Managing Director of the Tara Ocean Foundation, highlighted: « With BeMed, we have created a dialogue among science, industry and society. Why? The reason is that the challenge of reducing global plastic pollution is above all a corporate challenge. For the latter, the plastic transition is such an investment that they cannot fail, hence the importance of prior dialogue among actors ».
Promoting Sustainable Tourism has been a priority mission at BeMed for a long time in order to promote net zero plastic. In 2022, a pilot project at the InterContinental Marseille - Hôtel Dieu (French Riviera) succeeded in limiting single-use plastics without impacting the quality of service. All plastic products and packaging used in the hotel management were classified through a tailor-made methodology which allowed to build up a specific procedure addressed to all staff, from management to room attendants. Meanwhile, customers were invited to make choices for reducing plastic waste, at the end of life of those products.
Soon after, the Hotel La Badira in Hammamet (Tunisia) has managed to removed thousands of plastic packaging, not losing the hospitality high standards, certified by the Leading Hotels of the World membership. The outcome was win-win, with special regard to the kitchen management, providing operational efficiency, cost saving and circular economy.
Mercedes Muñoz Cañas, Head of the Marine Biodiversity and Blue Economy Programme at the IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation, concluded: « In 2024, we launched the BeMed+ project, which aims at capitalising on everything that has been done by the association so far, in order to reduce plastic pollution in the Mediterranean Basin. The project includes two pilot areas, in Monastir (Tunisia) and on the Shkumbin river in Albania, with the support of Surfrider Europe, IUCN, the Institute for Nature Conservation in Albania, and the association Notre Grand Bleu in Tunisia ».
Based on an investment of 4 million euros and the involvement of fifteen Mediterranean countries, Beyond Plastic Med has been engaged in answering the question "Plastic in the Mediterranean: beyond the observations, what are the solution?", since March 2015. BeMed has already achieved significant results thanks to its long-term commitment, tackling one of the main environmental problems in recent times. More than eight million tons of plastic litter are poured into the sea, every year. The low degradability of plastics makes it particularly dangerous for the ability to endanger marine life while entering easily into the living beings food chain. ***
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By Maurice Abbati
Journalist; Editor; Communication, Media and Public Relations Specialist
Lecturer and Author in English language of Technical Articles and the Manual: "Communicating the Environment to Save the Planet, a Journey into Eco-Communication" by Springer International Publishing.
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