Centre on Mediterranean Biosphere Reserves presented at UNESCO

The project, put forward by the Abertis Foundation, the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and the Autonomous Organism for National Parks (OAPN) of the Spanish Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Environment, sets down a public-private collaboration framework which came into being in November 2013 and which declared the headquarters of the Abertis Foundation, the Castellet castle, the new UNESCO Centre on Mediterranean Biosphere Reserves.

The presentation took place on 7 October and included speeches by Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO; Salvador Alemany, President of Abertis and of the Abertis Foundation; Juan Manuel de Barandica, Ambassador of the Kingdom of Spain to UNESCO; and Basilio Rada, Director of OAPN.

This past May, the Director-General of UNESCO visited the new centre, where she pointed out “the importance this public-private association has for the UNESCO as a pioneer initiative in the area of Biosphere Reserve”.

The designation will allow for an in depth study of the Mediterranean region, given that the Castellet castle is located in a unique enclave, surrounded by a rich biodiversity and has been accredited an ISO 14:001 certification. This certification guarantees a correct management of the environment while minimising any impact on the territory. 

The activities that will be conducted at the Castellet are focused on the creation of a source of documents on sustainability in natural areas, as well as on the environmental services of biosphere reserves and online sustainability indicators.

The centre will also create a database of North-South cooperation based on the compilation of publications on international cooperation in biosphere reserves and national parks existing in the Mediterranean region. It will also be in charge of organising seminars, meetings, educational proposals, outings and walks.

Biosphere reserves are geographical places representing the planet's different habitats and include both land and water ecosystems. At the beginning of the 1970s, the UNESCO began a selection of these natural areas with the aim of conserving and protecting their biodiversity, as well as fostering economic and human development in these regions through research, education and exchange of information within a global network which today includes over 560 biosphere reserves in 110 countries. These were UNESCO's first steps towards the concept of sustainable development which we now know as the Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB).