Guardians of the Beach: an ecosystem to understand, share, and protect. In Cecina, the mid-term meeting of the European AMMIRARE project: institutions and research discuss coastal resilience
A three-day series of meetings dedicated to the resilience of Mediterranean coasts and the role of nature-based solutions in the sustainable management of beaches. Marina di Cecina hosted the mid-term meeting of AMMIRARE – Actions and Methodologies for Improving the Resilience of Beaches, a European project funded by the Interreg Italy–France Maritime Programme and coordinated by the Interdisciplinary Research Center on Sustainability and Climate of the Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa. The project aims to tackle climate change through nature-based solutions.
The event, titled “Guardians of the Beach: an ecosystem to understand, share, and protect,” brought together public administrators, European institutions, stakeholders, and members of the scientific community to take stock of the project’s initial results and discuss strategies to address the challenges posed by climate change.
The meeting was attended by representatives of institutions, research bodies, and project partners from the cross-border area—Tuscany, Liguria, Sardinia, Corsica, and Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur—engaged in various capacities in the management and protection of coastal ecosystems. Participants included the Regional Councillor for the Environment of Tuscany, David Barontini; the Mayor of Cecina, Lia Burgalassi; Dario Labonia, Commander of the Villa Ginori Logistics and Training Base; and Filippo Giabbani from the Managing Authority of the Italy–France Maritime Programme. Proceedings were opened by Grammenos Mastrojeni, Deputy Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean, with a keynote address on the Mediterranean as one of the world’s climate hotspots. Greetings were also sent by Olivier Baudelet, rapporteur for the Italy–France Maritime Programme at the European Commission’s DG REGIO.
Two thematic sessions were held, guided by the project’s key concepts:
Understanding: presentation of the first results of coastal monitoring, methodologies for beach analysis, and strategies for the restoration of dune ecosystems.
Sharing and protecting: discussion among institutions, researchers, and local stakeholders on the actions needed to strengthen beach resilience, with a focus on the ecological role of Posidonia oceanica, a key element for shoreline protection that is often subject to conflicting perceptions among beach users. On this topic, research conducted by the Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa highlighted how perceptions of Posidonia are strongly influenced by context and communication, opening the way to new strategies for enhancing coastal biodiversity.
The morning of March 27 was dedicated to younger generations and concluded with a field activity at Gorette Beach (a pilot site of the project), which was transformed into an open-air classroom for students and researchers. The day marked the final event of an educational pathway developed in classrooms, during which students and teachers worked closely with the project’s researchers. After exploring the ecosystem value of Posidonia oceanica and dunes, students presented their work, including posters and educational games.
“Bringing together stakeholders, knowledge, and the capacity to apply it concretely is essential to address increasingly significant crises, including those linked to climate change and ongoing transformations. Universities can provide contributions based on science and the observation of nature—for example, in managing coastal resilience—but it is crucial that this knowledge be shared with citizens, who are key actors in their territories, as well as with economic stakeholders and institutions.
A collective effort is needed to help people understand the value of solutions such as more natural beach management and to enable systemic action. Only in this way will it be possible to support the necessary changes and make coastlines more capable of adapting to ongoing transformations. Our goal is precisely this: to systematize knowledge in order to effectively guide policymakers’ decisions" says Marco Frey, coordinatore of Interdisciplinary Research Center on Sustainability and Climate, Sant’Anna School of Advanced Studies, Pisa
