Tyre (Lebanon), November 2021

The BLUE TYRE project, a partnership made in Salento led by the Municipality of Tricase with the collaboration of Cooperation in the Territories of the World (CTM), just took off with the aim of improving the coastal and environmental governance of the city of Tyre in southern Lebanon.

The initiative was approved by the Italian Agency for Development Cooperation (AICS) and foresees the participation of the most virtuous territorial actors in the field of environmental management and marine and coastal monitoring:Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences and Technologies of the University of Salento(Di.S.Te.B.A.), the Natural History Museum of Salento and the association Magna Grecia Mare.

The Salento partners are committed to supporting the local municipality and the Nature Reserve of Tyre in order to identify a sustainable and inclusive economic, tourist and environmental model for the ancient Phoenician city, which is experiencing a moment of particular complexity due to anthropogenic pressures especially when considering the presence of the outsizedRashidieh refugee camp right inside a protected natural area.

An environmental observatory and a recovery center for sea turtles will be set up within the spaces of the Tyre Coast Nature Reserve.

The first mission of the Italian experts is scheduled for mid-December 2021 and will represent an opportunity to shape the scientific program and the calendar of missions from Italy planned in order to exchange expertise and best practices and allow the Municipality of Tricase and the Italian partners to come into direct contact with the Lebanese reality, which is particularly difficult today due to the socio-economic crisis and the worrying devaluation of the local currency.

The Mayors of Tricase and Tyre have expressed great appreciation for the initiative and are excited to undertake a joint path to enhance the inter-Mediterranean dialogue and the territorial networks of international cooperation under the scope of marine and coastal protection.