Sustainability actions in Mediterranean countries through cooperation partnerships: the case of the project PAMLED

Abstract

In recent years the involvement of the Third Mediterranean Countries in achieving the environmental policy objectives set up by the European Union have become more and more important. There have been several programs of cooperation with co-fund activities and actions to improve the state of the environment of Third Mediterranean partners in order to achieve a global improvement of the environment. This paper aims to present the results of the project PAMLED, which was co-funded by the Med-Pact Programme of the EU. The project will complete its course at the end of April and it aims to develop and strengthen the capabilities of three Mediterranean cities (City of Marrakech, Morocco, Sin El Fil, Lebanon and Bodrum, Turkey) in managing and promoting their local sustainable development, as well as implementing innovative different action fields. The strengthening of the capabilities of these Mediterranean partners was mainly based on ‘collective learning’, achieved by the constitution of partnerships with five European partners (the municipalities of Prato, Lucca, Brtonigla, Rio Marina and Skopje). The needs and priorities of each Mediterranean partner were identified and pilot actions were specifically elaborated in order to promote the sustainable development and the exploitation of local resources, with particular respect to environmental protection, the enhancement of local tangible and intangible assets, economic support and