Monaco’s presence in Spain this month is undeniable, with two events focusing on issues close to the heart of the Principality: tourism and the environment.
The 2nd Tourism Innovation Summit, held on 10th November in Seville, brought together over 500 delegates and provided a stage to those interested in collaborations and new ideas.
The event attracted two representatives from Monaco – the country’s Ambassador to Spain Catherine Fautrier-Rousseau and Director of Monaco Tourism and Congress Guy Antognelli.
Antognelli, along with Miguel Sanz, Managing Director of Turespaña, took part in a side event on the vision and repositioning of tourism in a post-Covid world. The occasion had the duel purpose of also allowing the Ambassador to meet authorities from Seville and the greater Andalusian region to speak about the possibilities of working together in the fields of the economy, new technologies, education and environmental practices and protections.
Ambassador Fautrier-Rousseau has had her hands full this month with another event, this one in anticipation of Mediterranean Day, which is officially on 28th November.
The Embassy of Monaco in Spain organised, in collaboration with IE University Madrid, a conference on the theme ‘The future of the Mediterranean: the challenge of protecting its environment’.
Santiago Íñiguez, Executive President of EI University Madrid, gave credit to Fautrier-Rousseau for collaborating on the event, saying that young people are responsive to this topic and that it is necessary to involve the next generation in this field where both creativity and innovation will be required.
Issues touched upon included the challenges facing the coastal countries on both the north and south coasts of the Med with regards to environmental protection, as well as how to pursue the development of economies and populations whilst enforcing proposed protections.
Bernard Fautrier, Advisor to the Cabinet of the Prince in Charge of Environmental Issues, stated in a recorded message how crucial it was to act and spoke about
the many concrete initiatives taken by the Principality in this area, such as the MedFund and BeMed.
Lucile Courtial, Secretary General of Beyond Plastic Med (BeMed), a Monegasque initiative launched in 2015, also spoke and presented the various innovative actions taken against the plastics invasion in the Mediterranean.
Deputy Secretary General of the Union for the Mediterranean (UfM), Isidro Gonzales Afonso recalled the importance of the role played by the UfM in this area. Indeed, member countries adopted at the recent Environment and Climate Action Summit an action plan to put in place numerous measures to preserve this sensitive area.
President of the Mediterranean Network of Marine Protected Areas (Med PAN), Purificacio Canals, spoke of the benefits of marine protected areas saying that, if managed effectively, they can constitute an investment and a refuge for biodiversity.
Finally, Alexander Van de Putte, Professor of Strategic Foresight at EI, spoke of the way in which the Mediterranean can become a vector for the development of renewable energies and insisted on the protection of the environment as a key factor of geopolitical stability.
The Embassy of Monaco also involved two Spanish artists who are committed to the protection of the environment: Luis Prieto Moreno, founder of MadBlue Summit and the Piel de Atun movement, as well as Pepe Monserrate, a known sculptor.
Photo credit: Julia Robles