Now, for the Mediterranean... it's Coast Day!

Every year in a different country to celebrate, support and protect the coasts of the Mediterranean Sea: this is Coast Day, which returns on 25 September in beautiful Vlora, Albania.
The initiative is organised by PAP/RAC, the UNEP/MAP Coastal Management Centre, to promote ICZM, Integrated Coastal Zone Management useful for achieving sustainable development of coastal areas.

This year's central theme will be coastal aquifers and their impact on the planet and everyday life. The importance of an integrated approach to managing groundwater resources and the coastal ecosystems on which they rely will be discussed. The full implementation of the legal instruments adopted under the Barcelona Convention through coastal policies and planning also contributes to enhancing coastal resilience.

Coast Day aims to raise environmental awareness among policy makers, academics, media, NGOs and local populations, but also to promote and implement activities that consider fragile ecological, social and cultural contexts and lead to sustainable coastal development.
The date of 25 September was chosen to commemorate Slovenia's first ratification of the ICZM Protocol.

On 25 September and in the following week there will be many events organised by MAP partners and organisations working in the region: discover them at Coast Day and remember that "The Mediterranean needs you. If you put a shell to your ear, you will hear it calling you".