Month: November 2018

The first General Assembly of the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI) under the Monegasque co-presidency, will be held from 5 to 7 December, at the Yacht Club of Monaco.

Panels of high-level international experts and representatives of the coral countries will meet in the Principality, from 3 December, at the invitation of the Monaco Scientific Center, the Monegasque Association on the Acidification of Oceans and the International Coral Reef Initiative, for a week of work dedicated to the preservation of coral reefs particularly threatened by climate change.

Reducing the risks of impact of climate change on coral reefs: what solutions?

Confronting ideas and points of view, prioritizing the measures to put into action to preserve the reefs, this is the purpose of the workshop organized by the Scientific Center of Monaco and the Monegasque Association on the Acidification of Oceans December 3rd and 4th.

Among the 14 experts recognized for their work on the reefs are the two Australian professors Terry Hughes and Ove Hoegh-Guldberg, both recipients of the “Climate Change” Prize of the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation in 2018 and 2014.

As one of the most endangered marine ecosystems, coral reefs are negatively impacted by local factors, such as pollution and coastal urbanization, and since the end of the 1980s have also been subject to ocean warming and acidification.

Extreme warming events have led to recurring episodes of large-scale coral bleaching and mass mortality, events which unfortunately should be more and more frequent in the decades to come.

While the Paris Accord aims to limit global warming to a temperature between 1.5 and 2°C compared with pre-industrial temperature, its implementation remains much too slow and it is not certain that the objectives fixed can be achieved.

However, even a warming of 1.5 or 2° will have significant negative impacts on coral reef systems.

Therefore, in addition to mitigation measures, other solutions must be considered in order to reduce risks, in particular by working at the local level on the protection of habitats and ecosystems or biological and ecological adaptation.

It is essential that the scientific community reaches consensus on the respective contributions of different approaches to reducing the impacts of climate change, in order to send a clear message to decision-makers about the measures that can be put in place.

Innovative Finance and Coral Reefs: What Opportunities?

December 4th will also be dedicated to an Innovative Finance Expert Workshop, organized by ICRI, in partnership with the Conservation Finance Alliance to provide an overview of reef-focused marine conservation funding opportunities. coral and related ecosystems.

More than 20 blue finance experts are expected to discuss Blue Bonds, Payment for Ecosystem Services, and the Global Coral Reef Fund (an initiative of the Prince Albert Foundation). II of Monaco and the Vulcan Group – initiative announced at the “Our Ocean” Conference in Bali).

HE Mr. Bernard Fautrier will open this working session, organized at the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco, intended for the different actors and professionals of the conservation and management of the marine and coastal environments but also for the representatives of the civil society, academics as well as the decision-makers of instances governmental and intergovernmental organizations.

General Assembly of the International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI)

ICRI, under the co-chairmanship of Australia, Indonesia and Monaco, will hold its General Assembly at the Monaco Yacht Club from 5 to 7 December.

ICRI is an international, informal initiative that brings together governments, international organizations, scientific entities and non-governmental organizations to reverse the degradation of coral reefs and associated ecosystems around the world. .

More than 60 participants are expected at this General Assembly, including the representatives of the founding countries of ICRI: the United States, Japan, the United Kingdom, the Philippines and France.

During this General Assembly, the action plan (2018-2020) of the ICRI Secretariat will be presented for adoption. An action plan that is ambitious, pragmatic and realistic, and will address the many human pressures facing coral reefs. The point will also be made on the International Year of Coral Reefs (IYOR2018) and the very strong mobilization of ICRI members around the world.

Monaco continues its digital transition with the implementation of online payment for surface parking.

Mayor Georges Marsan launched the operation at Boulevard Albert I on November 22, in the presence of the local press.

Monaco City Council manages, with the Municipal Police, about 1000 parking places in the Principality.

Motorists can now download the PayByPhone app to their phone, to pay for parking directly online.

The PayByPhone app is recognnised worldwide and it is number one in Europe for mobile parking payment, with a presence in eight countries and more than 500 cities.

The service is used by more than 14 million people. In just a few clicks, it is possible to select the parking zone and duration, then validate the payment – with the option to use the “extend” functions (without exceeding the maximum parking time depending on the zone to promote vehicle rotation) or “interrupt” and adjust the time remotely to pay only the time actually used.

Following the success of the first international blockchain event in Monaco, in May, the organisers bring a second event to the Grimaldi Forum.

On 29th and 30th November, more than 600 attendees will enjoy two days of conferences and keynotes.

Monaco International Blockchain summit brings together experts who want to learn or showcase blockchain technologies.

Several panel discussions are included in the two-day programme, including the environment, legislation, society, healthcare, hardware, crypto-markets, finance and the global economy.

Under the auspices of the Department of the Interior and the Prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes, a major civil security exercise is scheduled in the “Rainier III” road tunnel, on Tuesday 27 November between 9 pm and midnight.

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This cross-border structure is an important axis, especially for the western exit of the Principality and access to the A8 / A500 motorway, used every day by several thousand vehicles.

The exercise will be based on an accident in the upper part of the tunnel between an intercity bus and several passenger vehicles, resulting in many casualties. It will allow the implementation of the binational rescue plan to coordinate and set up the rescue chain between the Principality of Monaco and the department of Alpes-Maritimes.

More than 200 “active forces” will be engaged in this exercise, including, for the Monegasque part, the Department of the Interior, the Fire Brigade Corps of Monaco, the Directorate of Public Security, the Directorate of Health Affairs, the Prince’s Carabinier Corps, the Princess Grace Hospital Center (Emergencies and SMUR), the Monegasque Red Cross, the Integrated Management and Mobility Center, the Directorate of Prospective Planning, Urban Planning and Mobility, the Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince Buses from Monaco, and, for the French part, the Prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes, the National Gendarmerie, the Emergency Medical Assistance Service (SAMU), the Interministerial Service of Defense and Civil Protection, the Departmental Service of Fire and Rescue of the Alpes-Maritimes, and the Municipality of Cap d’Ail.

This exercise is a continuation of the various major exercises carried out in recent years with the Principality:

• Ligurian Sea earthquake (Monoïkos and Richter exercises) in connection with the Alpes-Maritimes Prefecture,
• Accident in the Monaco railway tunnel (binational exercise),
• Terrorist attack in the Rainier III Auditorium.

It allows regular training of both Monegasque and French intervention forces.

Please note that access to the Rainier III Tunnel will be closed on Tuesday, November 27th from 9pm to midnight.

The owner of AS Monaco, Dimitri Rybolovlev, has given his total support to Thierry Henry, after the manager secured his only win so far since taking over as boss.

Visiting the team’s training session, Rybolovlev, according to his spokesman, congratulated the team for the win over Caen and assured them, including Thierry Henry, of his total support.

Henry took over as manager following a string of bad results at the beginning of the season, from a team that lost its lustre since recent years of success.

Monaco won Ligue 1 in 2017 before finishing as runners up to PSG in 2018.