M Abti
- Dec 20, 2022
- 3 min read

Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation supports the Mediterranean cause at COP15 in Montreal.

Updated: Feb 20, 2023

The commitment of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation in the action of preservation of the Mediterranean Sea, already reaffirmed at COP27, has just taken a significant step at COP15 in Montreal (Canada). Nine donors joined their forces to boost biodiversity conservation through the building up of a specific Med Conservation Grant Tracker. This new mapping tool will make life easier to safeguard various ecosystems in the Mediterranean Basin as for the marine, freshwater and terrestrial environment. Why does that make a difference? The Mediterranean Sea is a treasure trove of biodiversity, counting more than 17,000 species of flora and fauna, mostly coming from the area, that is endemic.

Photo >> The © Med Conservation Grant Tracker mapping tool.

Massive urbanisation, pollution, climate change, and overexploitation are menacing the natural balance. The current situation should make us reflect. The International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources (IUCN) classifies 21% of the total as vulnerable species and 11% as endangered ones. Moreover, overfishing involves more the 75% of fish stocks. Investing in measures of protection and restoration is more and more essential to create concrete actions to ensure the survival of biodiversity.

Photo >> © Youth for a clean Adriatic Project: education, activism and cultural awareness to inspiring individuals to work together for cleaner Adriatic Sea.

The Med Conservation Grant Tracker is specifically addressed to give visibility to major funding projects focused on species and marine coastal preservation, blue economy and financing. More than 400 initiatives for a total of more than 200 M€. A significant portion of grants involves the Western part of the Mediterranean Region while Albania, Tunisia and Morocco are in the top list for land-based projects. The new mapping stems from the Med Donor's Roundtable, an informal body which includes the MAVA Foundation, the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, the Adessium Foundation, the Critical

Ecosystem Partnership Fund, the French Facility for Global Environment, Fundacion Biodiversidad, Oceans5, the Sigrid Rausing Trust and the Thalassa Foundation. The core mission of this close partnership is to focus on funding nature conservation, to avoid unnecessary duplication of actions in order to foster joint cooperation.

The Med Conservation Grant Tracker is a valuable chance to implement making action for nature more efficient. Based on the principle of continuous improvement, the tool is 'work in progress' and open to any advice that may lead to a further development of the instrument.

Stakeholders expressed great appreciation through a series of statements.

Philippe Mondielli, Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation, stressed: « We are delighted to partner with fellow donors on this effort to build on the legacy of past investment in the Mediterranean and to launch new collaborations in this iconic biodiversity hotspot, which we all need to urgently protect ».

Karlijn Steinbusch, Adessium Foundation, pointed out: « With this tool, we want to showcase some of the conservation action funded in the Mediterranean basin in the last years, encourage our fellow donors to join us and add their grants, and most importantly, to inspire new donors to invest in Mediterranean nature conservation ».

Paule Gros, MAVA Foundation, highlighted: « With the closing of the MAVA Foundation by the end of the year, the largest philanthropic funder in the region to date, there will be a gap to fill. We need all hands on deck to rise up to the challenge of protecting Mediterranean biodiversity ».

Pierre Carret, Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund, stated : « The Mediterranean region has sometimes been considered as a difficult region for nature conservation. We hope that this tool will help to persuade other donors to do good conservation work in the Mediterranean».