1

Why the project matters

According to the latest Annual Report “Wildfires in Europe, Middle East & North Africa 2022” by the European Commission Joint Research Centre (EC JRC), 2022 was the 2^nd worst year in the EU in terms of area burned by wildfires since 2006. Nearly 900.000 ha of natural land were affected by fires while around 43% of the total burnt area located within Natura2000 sites. Mitigating the impact of wildfires in the Mediterranean area requires a multifaceted approach. This includes implementing strategies to reduce the risk of ignition & public awareness campaigns. Additionally, it requires improving firefighting capabilities, fire risk prediction systems & adaptive management strategies that ensure long term health & resilience of ecosystems.

2

What it aims to achieve

To promote prescribed burning & silvopasture as Nature-based Solutions (NbS) for wildfire risk management (WRFM) through 7 pilots:

1. Catalonia (Spain) and Ain Snoussi (Tunisia), emphasizing on silvopastoral practices.
2. Tuscany (Italy) and Süleymandanişment (Türkiye), emphasizing on prescribed burning.
3. Catalonia (Spain) and Akkar (Lebanon), with a dual emphasis on silvopastoral practices and prescribed burning.
4. Attica (Greece) & Algiers (Algeria), fire spread scenarios both pre- and post-implementation of solutions to assess the effectiveness of nature-based approaches.

3

Expected change

• Enhanced situational awareness for evaluating sustainable interventions in strategic forest management areas, thereby refining risk management systems.
• Increased stakeholder capacity, raise public awareness & transfer its outcomes to regions among & beyond the project areas, contributing to more resilient Mediterranean forests to confront the climate change impacts.
• Partners involved will collaborate in designing and implementing cross-campaigns, engaging key stakeholders from their respective pilot regions, including primary beneficiaries (e.g., shepherds, land managers, firefighters…) and key enablers for the success of these initiatives (public authorities, policymakers, etc.).

4

What the project delivers

• Developed a guide to inform policymaking & enable the development of effective wildfire risk management strategies (WFRM) within the Mediterranean region.
• WFRM strategies translated into sustainable forestry interventions that are inspired by natural processes, including silvopastoral activities and prescribed burning.
• Strengthened institutional capacity, increased community participation & promoted a culture of resilience to the threat of wildfire by implementing knowledge transfer initiatives for areas beyond the scope of the project.

5

Who benefits

• Local communities living in high-risk areas of wildfires.
• First fire responder teams.
• Shepherds.
• Civil protection agencies.
• Policymakers.
• Environmental managers.