The International Symposium on Water and Wetlands in the Mediterranean was held in Agadir, Morocco from 6 to 8 February 2012 with the participation of 263 participants from 29 Mediterranean countries and beyond. A large number of the participants came from Morocco, making this event important both at the local and international levels. The participants represented a wide range of disciplines and positions, from forestry to tourism experts to biodiversity specialists and from Ministries to wetland centers to international and national NGO’s, which contributed to the diversity of voices and ideas that made this Symposium special.

The Symposium also hosted two groups of students from the Collège Pascal Paoli in Corsica, France and the Lycée Honoré de Balzac of Kenitra, Morocco. The students attended the Symposium but also had a parallel activity during the second day during which they visited the Souss-Massa Natural Park and Ramsar site. There they had the opportunity to explore the flora and fauna and learn about the human activities that take place around the park and their impacts on the ecosystem. After an exchange of information between the students, they presented their strongest conclusions in plenary on the final day. The participants of the Symposium were moved by the simple but direct message transmitted by the students. The participants also has the opportunity to watch a short film created by the Moroccan students  which we hope to make available to you very soon.

If you wish, you can see a short video on the Symposium and read a report of the activities of the students delegation by Mauricette Figarella from CAUE-2B.

Some pictures…