Climate resilience in the Mediterranean: Pisa and Florence host the General Assembly of the European Horizon Europe MED-IREN project
The project involves the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies, the University of Florence and the Tuscany Region, and aims to protect the Mediterranean region from extreme weather events through nature-inspired solutions

The Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa and the University of Florence hosted the General Assembly of the Horizon Europe MED-IREN project. Two days of meetings, workshops and interactive laboratories in which the more than sixty project partners, together with institutional representatives and stakeholders from different European regions, shared the results achieved so far and planned the next stages of work.
The MED-IREN project, which also involves the collaboration of the Tuscany Region, aims to protect critical local infrastructure from extreme weather events in the Mediterranean region. By combining nature-inspired solutions with engineering practices, the project will provide a nature-based approach to safeguarding Mediterranean societies from floods, forest fires, heat waves, coastal erosion and other climate hazards that threaten critical sectors such as transport, water resources, energy and social services.
Climate risk in the Mediterranean area
The Mediterranean Sea area has long been recognised as a place of high climate risk, experiencing prolonged heatwaves, severe droughts, devastating fires and floods. These extreme conditions can cause potential damage to critical infrastructure, limiting mobility and destroying water and energy supply systems, negatively affecting human activities, including local businesses and ecosystems. The Med-IREN project aims to protect critical local infrastructure from extreme weather events in the Mediterranean region by combining nature-inspired or “nature-based” (NBS) solutions with engineering practices.
The Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa is involved in the project with its Interdisciplinary Research Centre on Sustainability and Climate, while Prof. Lorenzo Cappietti coordinates the team from the University of Florence.
The project will be implemented in five Mediterranean regions — Granollers (Spain), Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur (France), Ischia (Italy), Tuscany (Italy), Egaleo (Greece) — and the solutions and interventions will be replicated in four EU regions — Larnaca (Cyprus), Sitia (Greece), Burgas (Bulgaria), Helsinki (Finland). In Tuscany, the pilot site is Marina di Pisa, where frequent storm surges have long caused extensive damage to local infrastructure and businesses.
The first day of the General Assembly in Pisa
The day of 20 October in Pisa began with the opening ceremony and presentation of the project's progress in the Aula Magna of the Sant'Anna School. This was followed by a workshop dedicated to “stakeholder engagement” activities - interactive workshops involving various stakeholders in the area of analysis, aimed at creating good practices for the implementation of NBS - which have been carried out since the beginning of the project and at defining a common vision for the coming months. In the afternoon, participants took part in a site visit to Marina di Pisa, an opportunity to observe the local coastal environment and the challenges associated with climate change management and adaptation.
The second day of the programme in Florence
On 21 October, a day of thematic workshops on coastal adaptation was held in Florence, sponsored by UNESCO and organised by the University of Florence and the National Group for Coastal Environment Research (GNRAC). The session involved experts, institutions and representatives of national and European bodies, who presented innovative experiences and strategies for coastal adaptation to climate change. In the afternoon, an interactive workshop was held between technical partners and representatives of the various sites, aimed at sharing approaches and good practices.
The event was an important opportunity for technical and institutional discussion, promoting the exchange of knowledge and strengthening collaboration between project partners, with the common goal of developing resilient solutions for the protection and sustainable management of Mediterranean coasts.
Interview with Marco Frey
Ansa, a project partner, conducted an interview with Marco Frey, coordinator of the Interdisciplinary Research Centre, which can be viewed at this link: