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Third Mediterranean Agricultural Forum AGROMED
Mediterranean agriculture and climate change
Šibenik, May 19 (Friday), 2023,
Municipal library “Juraj Šižgorić”, Poljana 6
Institute for European and Globalization Studies, Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Croatia, City of Šibenik, Šibenik-Knin County
Forum's Concept
- The Mediterranean Agricultural Forum supports the European Green Deal and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 2030)
- The Mediterranean Agricultural Forum is a place of professional and scientific discussion
- The ideas, proposals and conclusions of the Forum are the backbone of new agricultural policies based on the idea of self-sustainability and self-sufficiency
- The idea of self-sustainability and self-sufficiency is based on the concept of Mediterranean agricultural culture, Mediterranean lifestyle, and Mediterranean diet
- The Mediterranean Agricultural Forum stems from the premise of Mediterranean culture, but with special emphasis on agricultural crops. The focus is on the semiotics of space, which refers to Croatia, the Mediterranean, but also the entire EU
- The forum is taking place in Šibenik, the city of the Croatian part of the Mediterranean
- The Mediterranean Agricultural Forum is a meeting place for theory and practice in the field of agriculture. Croatian, but also farmers from other countries, will have the opportunity to present products, i.e., Mediterranean agricultural crops, but also the production specific to Mediterranean agriculture
Orientation
- The Forum was established in September 2020 as the backbone of a new social paradigm
- Agriculture based on self-sustainability, circular economy and bio-eco-production is a strategic activity of the new social paradigm
- Contemporary challenges, climate change, pandemics, economic crises indicate all the challenges agriculture is facing
- Food production in the entire European Union, including Croatia, should be economically and ecologically adjusted to the European Green Deal and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 2030)
- Mediterranean Agricultural Forum emphasizes the agricultural symbols of the Mediterranean: grapes, wine, figs, olives, olive oil, etc., but also fisheries and specific livestock production
Goals
- The Mediterranean Agricultural Forum supports the European Green Deal and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs 2030)
- The Mediterranean Agricultural Forum is a place of professional and scientific discussion
- The ideas, proposals and conclusions of the Forum are the backbone of new agricultural policies based on the idea of self-sustainability and self-sufficiency
- The idea of self-sustainability and self-sufficiency is based on the concept of Mediterranean agricultural culture, Mediterranean lifestyle, and Mediterranean diet
- The Mediterranean Agricultural Forum stems from the premise of Mediterranean culture, but with special emphasis on agricultural crops. The focus is on the semiotics of space, which refers to Croatia, the Mediterranean, but also the entire EU
- The forum is taking place in Šibenik, the city of the Croatian part of the Mediterranean
- The Mediterranean Agricultural Forum is a meeting place for theory and practice in the field of agriculture. Croatian, but also farmers from other countries, will have the opportunity to present products, i.e., Mediterranean agricultural crops, but also the production specific to Mediterranean agriculture
Identity and self-sustainability
- In the global risk society, significantly marked by the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for a new social paradigm is emphasized
- Among the policies that determine it is (self) sustainable agricultural policy
- Mediterranean agricultural policy stands out as one of the important components at the level of macro-regions. It will be promoted and studied through the Mediterranean Agricultural Forum (AGROMED)
Forum's three
panels
The first panel
Climate change and threats to Mediterranean agriculture (international panel)
Coastal areas face increased risks from disasters, including flooding and erosion, and the salinization of river deltas and aquifers that sustain food security and livelihoods. It is predicted that by 2050 the demand for water will double or even triple. Global warming of 2°C will reduce precipitation by ~10 to 15%. An increase of 2°C to 4°C would reduce precipitation by up to 30% in southern Europe. Water temperatures are expected to rise by between 1.8°C and 3.5°C by 2100, with hotspots in Spain and the eastern Mediterranean. Renowned experts from the Mediterranean area talk about these changes and their consequences.
The second panel
The impact of climate change on Mediterranean agriculture in Croatia
Croatia is one of the countries that will have significant consequences of the impact of climate change. The rise in sea level is already visible during the south and low tides. The quality of the land is declining, droughts are getting longer and more frequent, and rare karst water sources are under increasing pressure and exploitation. Agriculture is crying out for systematic irrigation and sustainability. This panel discusses the threats facing Croatian Mediterranean agriculture.
The third panel
Addressing the impact of climate change
We are not adapting well enough to the inevitable changes, and we are also doing too little with all the other adversities such as pollution or degradation of land and sea. Building a climate-resilient city is not necessarily more expensive than building a conventional city, and there are plenty of opportunities for that transformation on both coasts. A rapid transition to crops adapted to arid climates could make a big difference, as could choosing types of agriculture that are more harmonious with natural ecosystems. This panel explores possible short-term and long-term responses to the challenge of climate change in agriculture.
Vedran Obućina, Forum's director
About the Mediterranean Agricultural Forum
The Mediterranean region is warming 20 percent faster than the world, raising concerns about the impact climate change and other environmental upheavals will have on the region’s ecosystems, agriculture, and 542 million people.
Heat waves, drought, extreme weather, and sea level rise are among the impacts the region can be expected to continue until the end of the century, and failure to curb carbon dioxide emissions and other greenhouse gases could exacerbate these problems. Determining a direction that both mitigates climate change and promotes adaptation to its effects is further complicated by the Mediterranean mix of countries, cultures, and economies, leading to vast differences in vulnerability in the region.
The population will have to find ways to cope with other problems that converge here: endangered biodiversity, high pollution, increasing drought, and increasing land degradation. Climatologists, social scientists, and development experts are already grappling with this perplexing set of questions in hopes of finding solutions or at least figuring out a way for the cradle of civilization to survive. Understanding what makes communities vulnerable to environmental change is critical to addressing the future impacts of climate change. Hand in hand with this understanding, there must be an emphasis on building resilience to reduce or even eliminate the vulnerability, rather than waiting for the consequences.
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