An alliance at the heart of the United Nations Decade for Ocean Science
The Centre d’Activités Régionales des Zones Spécialments Protegées (SPA/RAC) and the international organization Gaia First announce a strategic collaboration to strengthen marine and coastal conservation in the Mediterranean.
This cooperation is fully aligned with the implementation of the Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Programme (IMAP) of the Barcelona Convention and will contribute concretely to the achievement of the Good Environmental Status (GHG) of marine and coastal ecosystems.
A partnership supporting specially protected areas and the IMAP program
By combining their expertise, Gaia First and SPA/RAC aim to strengthen:
- The collection and analysis of scientific data (environmental DNA, underwater noise, plastic pollution);
- Understanding of anthropogenic pressures;
- The integration of traditional ecological knowledge;
- Citizen Science and Environmental Education;
- Cooperation between institutions, local communities and stakeholders in the field.
This collaboration aims to establish concrete bridges between the Mediterranean policies provided for by the Barcelona Convention and the international frameworks of the United Nations Decade for Ocean Science, while actively contributing to the Sustainable Development Goals of the United Nations 2030 Agenda.
Guardians of Gaia: the global program – Mare Nostrum: its maritime component
Guardians of Gaia is the international program led by Gaia First, with the support of UNESCO. It aims to create a network of local and regional initiatives that transform the specificities of each territory into a common good, linking traditional knowledge, advanced science and civic engagement – from the mountains to the sea.
Mare Nostrum represents its maritime component. It unfolds through two complementary dimensions: a network of coastal poles established along the Mediterranean basin, and an expedition aboard a large sailboat under the patronage of the French National Commission for UNESCO.
The Mediterranean, as the cradle of this initiative, will serve as a pilot model for the gradual deployment of 150 poles in 60 countries by 2030.
Hubs Guardians of Gaia: living spaces at the service of communities
These centers are not just scientific stations. These are living spaces where protected area managers, local authorities, fishing communities, residents, schools, young people, researchers and associations come together. They become:
- Learning and awareness spaces for schools and citizens;
- Places to transmit traditional knowledge and ancestral practices to protect the sea;
- active conservation centers where science meets society;
- Connection points within a Mediterranean network — and ultimately global.
They inspire vocations, empower local youth as guardians of their natural heritage and prepare them to become global ambassadors.
Mare Nostrum: the expedition, maritime component of the program
A first scientific, educational and cultural expedition aboard a large sailboat will connect Tangier to Monaco, with stopovers in Cartagena, Tunis, Palermo and Nice.
It will offer forty young international explorers an immersive experience of several weeks combining scientific data collection, environmental diplomacy, intercultural learning and transmission of traditional knowledge.
Traditional maritime expertise: a pillar for the future
In the Mediterranean basin, resource management is based as much on centuries of observation and traditional know-how as on new technologies. The program integrates this knowledge in the form of comprehensive scientific and ethical protocols.
By combining scientific monitoring with traditional knowledge and practices, the program builds an alliance between heritage and innovation. UNESCO recognized this approach in a letter to Gaia First dated February 10, 2025, highlighting « a vision that bridges the gap between traditional knowledge and ecological science. «
A structuring collaboration for the Mediterranean
Through this partnership, Gaia First and SPA/RAC are laying the foundation for a model where science, culture, education and local communities converge to sustainably protect Mediterranean ecosystems and transmit this legacy to future generations.
About SPA/RAC
Based in Tunis since 1985, the Centre régional d’activités des zones especialles protégés (SPA/RAC) supports the contracting parties to the Barcelona Convention in their efforts to protect and sustainably manage marine and coastal biodiversity in the Mediterranean. It contributes in particular to the conservation of species and habitats, as well as to the development and effective management of protected marine and coastal areas.
The Integrated Monitoring and Assessment Program (IMAP), adopted under the UNEP/MAP, provides a common framework for monitoring the state of the marine and coastal environment and guides actions to achieve good environmental status.
About Gaia First
Gaia First is an international organization committed to protecting biodiversity through a systemic approach combining science, education and environmental, scientific and cultural diplomacy.
Guardians of Gaia is an official action of the United Nations Decade for Ocean Science.
The program is supported by major institutional partners, including:
- UNESCO and the French Commission for UNESCO
- UNEP/MAP – SPA/RAC
- EU4Ocean (European Commission – Youth and Oceanic Literacy)
- International Maritime Organization (IMO) – strategic partner of the Ocean Waste Program (IMO, FAO, EMF) and the Global Noise Partnership (IMO, UNDP, GEF)
- CNRS (consortium on high-sea issues)
- UNIMED (network of 184 universities and research institutions)
- FEE – Foundation for Environmental Education
