Montpellier, France - 28, 29 and 30 November 2022

On the occasion of CIHEAM's 60th anniversary celebrations, a hundred young people gathered at the CIHEAM Montpellier to present their aspirations and projects for more sustainable and inclusive agrifood systems in the Mediterranean. This three-day event, in addition to young professionals, activists and students, mobilised international experts, CIHEAM partners and elected representatives that were able to exchange their views.

Young people from the 13 CIHEAM member countries have been working since July on the elaboration of a White Paper in which they presented their visions and proposed recommendations for the future of Mediterranean agri-food systems, addressing the following four areas :

- Which rural world in 2050?

- Which agricultural model(s) in 2050?

- What training, what research, and what agricultural advice in 2050?

- What regional cooperation and solidarity mechanisms in 2050?

On November 28, the group of young people met to finalize their proposals and to extract 4 key actions to present to the high-level participants mobilized for the occasion. They wished to present the following projects: the creation of a rural women's office, the development of an action plan to support the transition to agroecology, recommendations for supporting youth innovation and dissemination of the results of applied research, and a system of regional cooperation for youth in the Mediterranean.

The various panels brought together a plurality of speakers from different backgrounds. Academics, representatives of public institutions and international organisations, ministries, representatives of the Region, elected officials, representatives of civil society and the private sector debated, in the presence of young people, on the following themes:

-Sustainable and inclusive agrifood systems in the Mediterranean of tomorrow, in the light of the lessons of history and the scenarios of the future 

-The management of current crises by governments and the measures that need to be taken to address long-term problems

-The adaptation of technical and financial cooperation mechanisms to better respond to future challenges and current emergencies. 

In the pictures:

• Mohamed Sgheir BEN YOUSSEF, Project Manager, BusinessMED
• Patrice BURGER, President, NGO CARI
• Faouzia CHARFI, Former Secretary of State for Higher Education
• Julian CLEC'H, Head of Cabinet, Union for the Mediterranean
• Salem DARWICH, Advisor to the Lebanese Minister of Agriculture
• Giordano DICHTER, Private Sector Development, Mediterranean Innovation Platform: Fostering Youth Innovation
• Faten KHAMASSI, Head of Cabinet, Tunisian Minister of Agriculture
• Denis LACROIX, Vice-President, Plan Bleu
• Elen LEMAITRE-CURRI, Deputy Director, CIHEAM Montpellier
• Blanca MORENO-DODSON, Director, Centre for Mediterranean Integration

The debates took place in three emblematic places of the city in terms of knowledge production and sharing, the Faculty of Medicine, the House of International Relations and the Mediterranean Agronomic Institute (CIHEAM Montpellier).

In the pictures:

• Hatem BELHOUCHETTE, Scientific Administrator, CIHEAM Montpellier
• Mohamed Sgheir BEN YOUSSEF, Project Manager, BusinessMED
• Julian CLEC'H, Head of Cabinet, Union for the Mediterranean
• Raul COMPES, Director, CIHEAM Zaragoza
• Salem DARWICH, Advisor and Representative, Minister of Agriculture of Lebanon
• Thierry DUPEUBLE, Director, CIHEAM Montpellier
• Clara HART, Vice-President, Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole, Delegate for International Outreach and European Cooperation
• Faten KHAMASSI, Head of Cabinet and Representative, Tunisian Minister of Agriculture
• Blanca MORENO-DODSON, Director, Centre for Mediterranean Integration
• Placido PLAZA, Secretary General, CIHEAM
• Daniel SCHLOSSER, for the Ministerial Delegation for the Mediterranean (DIMED)
• Isabelle TOUZARD, Vice-President, delegated to the Ecological and Solidarity Transition, Biodiversity, Energy, Agroecology and Food, Montpellier Méditerranée Métropole

On 30 November, youth took the floor to present and discuss their recommendations

During the three days, the young people expressed their concerns about the aggravation and multiplication of crises in the region and their impact on food security and territorial stability. The event in Montpellier launched the Mediterranean Youth White Paper initiative for more sustainable and inclusive food systems and follow-ups are already planned to operationalize specific actions.