In March 2022, the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe and the abrdn Charitable Foundation announced a 3-year partnership which includes an agreement to fund projects from UNESCO designated sites (Biosphere Reserves, Global Geoparks and Natural World Heritage sites). These will aim to promote sustainability through research, education and innovative solutions to environmental and climate change challenges. In May, the interdisciplinary project of this partnership, “Promoting Sustainable Development Through UNESCO’s Programmes and Sites”, passed its first important milestone: 5 UNESCO Designated sites were selected out of 25 applications from more than 20 countries for the first cycle of the project.
The project aims to promote a more sustainable and climate neutral Europe by working through UNESCO sites to implement the Sustainable Development Goals, notably SDG 6 (Clean water and sanitation), SDG 13 (Climate Action), SDG 14 (Life below Water) and SDG 15 (Life on land).
The project will work through a total of 15 sites in 3 years, and each year 5 sites will be endorsed by the projects’ advisory board made up of UNESCO and abrdn Charitable Foundation (aCF).
Each site will be expected to implement 3 interconnected expected results, namely:
• The promotion of research related to UNESCO’s science intergovernmental programmes: biodiversity, nature-based solutions, ecosystem services, water, the ocean, and the climate.
• The promotion of Education for Sustainable Development, water education and Ocean Literacy, and climate change education working with schools within the sites.
• The promotion of innovative ‘green’ and ‘blue’ solutions for sustainable development, climate change mitigation and adaptation involving key stakeholders such as local businesses, NGOs and youth.
The call for applications for the first year cycle of the project was published in April and closed on 9 May 2022. UNESCO received 25 applications from more than 20 European countries, and many others contacted UNESCO expressing their interest in applying in the following years.
All submitted project proposals were evaluated by the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe against the published criteria. The evaluation process included an eligibility check, as well as a three-level assessment conducted by UNESCO specialists in science, education, culture and Ocean Literacy. The short listed applications were then reviewed by the project Advisory Board, made up of UNESCO and aCF, at its first meeting on 17 May 2022. Following an additional period of review and discussions between UNESCO and aCF, a final decision was made regarding the selection of the sites, and communications were sent out to the sites that had submitted proposals.
The winning proposals for the first cycle are:
• “St. Naum springs – Biological and Ecosystem services Inventory (SN-BESI)”, OHRID-PRESPA Biosphere Reserve and Natural And Cultural Heritage of the OHRID region (North Macedonia, Albania)
• “Monitoring marine litter and generating fit-for-purpose data through a participatory science approach in Asterousia Biosphere Reserve”, Asterousia Mountain Range Biosphere Reserve (Greece)
• “Pianosa Island: hydrological processes and water resources sustainability in climate-changing Mediterranean”, Tuscan Islands Biosphere Reserve (Italy)
• “Sustainable management of urban aquifers”, The Living Coast – Brighton And Lewes Downs Biosphere Reserve (UK)
• “Dry meadows and Kozjansko and Obsotelje biosphere reserve”, Kozjansko and Obsotelje Biosphere Reserve (Slovenia)
Each selected site project will be allocated funding to implement activities following the 3 expected results, with a total amount of up to 25,000 USD per site.
UNESCO will work with the selected sites to ensure the expected results fit within priority areas of UNESCO’s scientific programmes, namely the Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme, the Intergovernmental Hydrological Programme (IHP), and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC) and can be scaled up to the regional and global level as best practices.
The partnership and project with the abrdn Charitable Foundation is a very important one for UNESCO. UNESCO needs to work with the private sector on important topics such as biodiversity, water, the ocean and climate change if it wants to make a difference. This project is investing in the future and in opportunities for change.