The strengthening of the role of the partner Universities as policy advisor is one among the specific objectives of our project. Partner HEIs wish to strengthen their capacity to provide policymakers with objective critiques to the legal and Biosphere Reserves governance status quo on a scientific evidence-base. The clear understanding of the legal framework and […]

The possibility to apply for a scholarship offered for students and research staff interested in Mediterranean Biosphere Reserves is now extended up to February 15th, 2022. Scholarships are proposed by the Autonomous University of Barcelona in the framework of the Edu-BioMed project, which aims to strengthen, foster and upgrade academic activity at four Moroccan and Lebanese […]

Multimedia plays today a huge role in bridging the gap between people living in cities and nature. Very often, seeing an add or a photograph on social media triggers people curiosity and open their eyes to nature’s beauty and invite them to visit. What if the multimedia material is more than an invitation but rather […]

Edu-BioMed’s aim is to strengthen, improve and upgrade academic activity at four Moroccan and Lebanese universities in the context of Mediterranean Biosphere Reserves, in collaboration and through networking with BRs’ stakeholders. The upgrading of curricula at targeted HEIs is among the specific objectives of Edu-BioMed. The idea is to further build the capacity of Higher […]

The UNESCO website gives us an explanation of biosphere reserves, indicating that they are “places of learning for sustainable development”. They are sites for testing interdisciplinary approaches to understanding and managing changes and interactions between social and ecological systems, including conflict prevention and management of biodiversity. They are places that provide local solutions to global […]

On October 26th and 27th, 2021 it will be held the Capacity Building in Higher Education (CBHE) Virtual Fair, an online event aiming to raise awareness on how results of CBHE projects can improve the Higher Education sector in the Partner countries. During the two days about 100 CBHE projects from all regions of the […]

A team from the Nutrition Department at the Saint Joseph University of Beirut, led by Cynthia Helou – Senior Lecturer – Head of the Food Technology Master and Tatiana Papazian – Assistant Professor at the Faculty of Pharmacy and licensed dietitian – conducted fieldworks in thirteen guesthouses of two Lebanese Biosphere Reserves: Jabal Moussa and […]

As part of the Edu-BioMed project, two professors and two students from the LERMA team, from the Cadi Ayyad Marrakech University, participated in a scientific field trip in the regions of Agadir, Tiznit, Arbaa Sahel, Sidi Ifni Ameln and Tafraout. This field trip, which took place from April 1 to 5, 2021, had the objectives […]

Following a first field visit held on the end of October and beginning of November 2020, Hala Idrassen and Salma El Ghiouan, Doctoral Students at the University Cadi Ayyad of Marrakech have conducted a five weeks field work in the territory of the Biosphere Reserve of the Arganeraie to develop their Doctoral thesis. Hala Idrassen […]

Edu-BioMed project will be presented on June 17th & 18th, 2021 on the occasion of the journées d’études internationales « Education, Territoires, et Environnements au temps de l’Anthropocène » organised by the Unité Mixte de Recherche LISA of the Université de Corse. The event will be held at the premises of the Université de Corse and it […]

The Biosphere Reserve of Jabal Moussa and the Biosphere Reserve of the Arganeraie took part on May 19, 2021 in the online workshop Re-connecting Tourism with the Biosphere: a Mediterranean perspective. The workshop organised by UNIMED in the framework of the project Sustainable Tourism (co-funded by the InterregMED programme) brought together 4 speakers and more […]

On April 19, 2021, Prof. Salma Talhouk, from the American University of Beirut, has been interviewed within the program “Lebanon with a Twist”. The Edu-BioMed project, the application that the American University of Beirut is developing and the topic of citizen science have been the focus of the interview. “Lebanon with a Twist” is a […]

In a workshop promoted by the Sustainable Tourism Community, an initiative co-funded by the InterregMED programme, representatives of successful EU-funded projects from both shores of the Mediterranean will meet to exchange their experiences. Particular attention will be given to the Biosphere reserves as learning places and strategic actors of sustainable development. >> REGISTER HERE The […]

The Nature Conservation Center at the American University of Beirut, partner of the Edu-BioMed project, and “Fondation Diane” a Lebanese NGO that promotes civic awareness and eco-sustainable development, have developed Daskara, a free phone application. Daskara, which means Authentic Village, connects explorers and tourists to diverse localities throughout the country to find new cultural experiences, […]

“Learning to manage people and nature for a sustainable future in model regions worldwide!” –  This in short is the aim of the Master’s Programme ‘Biosphere Reserves Management’ at Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development in Germany. The international study programme will start its second course in September 2021. Teaching language is English. If you are […]

UNESCO is organizing an online event entitled “Our Planet, Our Future: 50 Years of UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere programme – On the way to Kunming” on March 24th, 2021 from 1 pm to 5 pm. The year 2021 is a crucial year for biodiversity, during which new objectives and new commitments will be made […]

The fourth newsletter of the project Edu-BioMed has been published. It is accessible here. This year marks the 50th Anniversary of UNESCO’s Man & Biosphere Programme. UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme was created in 1971 with a vision: promote a sustainable connection between people and nature. This celebration is meaningful for the Edu-BioMed project. This is the […]

On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the MAB Programme, UNESCO has established a partnership with The Conversation France, an on-line media that publishes scientific articles from (PhD) researchers in 3 languages (English, French and Spanish).  As part of this partnership, UNESCO and The Conversation will jointly launch a series of articles to highlight […]

The University of Saint Joseph of Beirut and the American University of Beirut, partners of the project EduBioMed, are conducting a joint research for an inventory of wild mushrooms in the two lebanese Biosphere Reserves of Jabal Moussa and Shouf. Mushrooms play an important role in the environment. Most of them are natural recyclers (saprophytes). […]

This year marks the 50th Anniversary of UNESCO’s Man & Biosphere Programme. UNESCO’s Man and the Biosphere Programme was created in 1971 with a vision: promote a sustainable connection between people and nature. Here you will find a timeline of its history. This celebration is meaningful for the Edu-BioMed project which aims at strengthening, ameliorating and […]

UNESCO prizes and MAB awards UNESCO and its Man and the Biosphere (MAB) programme afford recognition to outstanding contributions in the management or preservation of the environment; honour successful management of biosphere reserves in line with recommendations of the Seville Strategy; and foster access for young scientists, especially women, to advanced research facilities through respective […]

EduBioMed project partners wish you all Happy and Safe Holiday’s season! Hoping that next year will be a better one, we are continuing to carry out our activities. Stay tuned!

In the framework of the Edu-BioMed project, a field trip has been realized in the Biosphere Reserve of the Arganeraie in Morocco (BRA), guided by Mr. Said Boujrouf, Professor of Geography at the University Cadi Ayyad of Marrakesh and his three students, Hala Idrassen, Salma El Ghiouan and Hajar El Yazidi. The expedition took place […]

“As time goes by and country management falls apart, I realize that Biosphere Reserves are the greatest invention. More relevant today than 50 years ago…” Pierre Doumet, Co-Founder and President of the Association for the Protection of Jabal Moussa The Association for the Protection of Jabal Moussa (APJM), partner in the EduBioMed project, is also […]

Having chosen the study of forest fires including fire prevention techniques and awareness-raising among Biosphere Reserves’ communities, Maya (Université Saint Joseph de Beyrouth, Lebanon) moved from Lebanon to Morocco for two months, from February 16th to May 21st 2020. She benefited from an Edu-BioMed scholarship offered to students and research staff interested in Mediterranean Biosphere […]

On October 15, 2020 on the occasion of the Erasmus days, Edu-BioMed project was showcased in the webinar Mediterranean Mobility Matters. Organised by UNIMED in the framework of the Erasmus Days initiative, the focus of the webinar was the Mobility and in particular the Mobilty South-South, a scheme that in Edu-BioMed is taking place. If […]

On October 15, 2020 the Project EduBioMed will participate in a Webinar titled Mediterranean Mobility Matters, organised by UNIMED – Mediterranean Universities Union and involving EduBioMed and DIRE-MED projects partners. The webinar is organised under the umbrella of the Erasmus Days and will focus on the University Mobility as an important topic at regional and […]

Testimonials from students who engaged in the Edu-BioMed project are shared in a video documentary made by the University Mohammed V of Rabat, Morocco (UM5). By choosing the Intercontinental Biosphere Reserve of Mediterranean (RBIM, Morocco-Spain) as a case study for their Master thesis research, several students from Morocco and Lebanon share their studies from different […]

Concerning the topic of sustainability, the EduBioMed team wants to inform you that the Belmont Forum has launched a collaborative research networking call on the theme: Transdisciplinary Research for Pathways to Sustainability. The goal of this CRA is to provide a science base for achieving sustainability goals. The CRA will support 1-2 years of collaborative […]

Green spaces inside cities form a new type of nature created from ‘scratch’ or irreversibly changed by people. This new nature in the city is novel because all its components are ‘artificially’ co-occurring; the soil, the water, the nutrients, and plant species which never existed together grow side by side in the city. Yet, this […]

On September 1st, 2020 Magda Bou Dagher Kharrat, Professor at Faculty of Science, Saint Joseph’s University, co-founder and President of JOUZOUR LOUBNAN NGO, has accompanied the French President, Mr. Emmanuel Macron, in Jaj Nature Reserve to plant a cedar tree on the occasion of Lebanon centenary. She agreed to share her thoughts with the EduBioMed […]

The second newsletter of the project EduBioMed has been published. It is accessible here. This year, the international COVID-19 health emergency has put everybody in difficult situations and our project too has met difficulties in implementing some activities. Events and mobilities are only postponed and we have moved on with further activities of the project. Check out the […]

Very often, talking about « projects » means using technical terms and very specific language understandable only to insiders/professionals. Sometimes these aspects make it difficult for a wider community of people to clearly understand what a project really does and why it is important. We asked Mrs. Catherine Cibien, Director of MAB France, to help us clarify […]

Having chosen the feasibility study of the creation of a Biosphere Reserve in Jezzine (South Lebanon), Marie-Claire has moved from Lebanon to France, in Castanet-Tolosan in the INRA Campus to do her internship with the MAB France for one month from February 24th to March 22nd. She benefited from an EduBioMed scholarship offered to students […]

“The World Environment Day is an opportunity for a serious reflection on the historic moment we are living. A moment of several emergencies, pandemic and climatic. A moment of concern, at local and global level, for the human and environmental destiny. This year, the World Environment Day, is dedicated to the biodiversity and its important […]

The current COVID-19 health crisis has created grave uncertainties across the world. In response, governments have brought in unprecedent measures to curb the spread of the virus and mitigate the economic fallout. Whilst COVID-19 has seemingly put environmental diplomacy on hold with the postponement of COP26 and the 15th Biodiversity COP, what does the current […]

Upon careful consideration of the Coronavirus concerns, the Winter School of the project EduBioMed, scheduled for 8-12 March 2020, will be postponed to a new date to be defined. We will communicate the new plan in the next few weeks. Stay tuned!

The first newsletter of the project EduBioMed has been published. It is accessible here. One year has already passed from the project Kick-Off Meeting! Discover right now the activities that took place in the framework of the project since then and the opportunities this project renders possible. If you don’t want to miss the next […]

The Autonomous University of Barcelona, in collaboration with the University of Aix-Marseille, the Montseny Biosphere Reserve (Spain) and the Mont Ventoux Biosphere Reserve (France) as part of the Edu-BioMed project, organises an interdisciplinary training in the fields of Biosphere Reserve management, research and education. This winter school entitled “In Mediterranean Biosphere Reserves: From Theory to […]

“Cooperation between universities and Biosphere Reserves’ actors should be the most developed possible. This would allow both students and university teachers to not only be “knowledge provider” but also “boosters” of those Biosphere Reserves, leading to positive and lasting impacts” said Mr Afker AbdelAziz in an interview realized in the framework of the EduBioMed project. […]

(Rome, 21 October 2019) To further understand what the project Edu-BioMed aims at achieving, and the importance of cooperation between higher education programmes and Biosphere Reserves (BR) management, UNIMED – partner of the  project Edu-BioMed, has interviewed Mr. Afker Abdel Aziz, partnership officer in the Regional Directorate of Water and Forests and the fight against […]

(Rome, 11 October 2019) The first student mobility event of the Edu-BioMed project took place last September in the Jabal Moussa UNESCO Biosphere Reserve (BR), in Kesrouan District, Lebanon. On this occasion, students of the American University of Beirut accompanied by architect Mr. Nicolas Fayad of the Department of Architecture and Design, Mr. Moustapha Itani […]

(Rome, 15 July 2019) Located in Kesrouan District (Lebanon) and overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, the Jabal Moussa Biosphere Reserve (BR), partner of Edu-BioMed project, entered the UNESCO Network of Biosphere Reserves under the Man and Biosphere (MAB) program in 2009, within which it “addresses human livelihood improvement and nature conservation through combining natural sciences with […]

(Rome, 14 May 2019) – “We seek to establish a real dialogue within the Mediterranean area, between countries that have both a natural richness and a cultural resemblance,” declared Mr. Pierre Doumet, President of the Association for the Protection of the Jabal Moussa Biosphere Reserve, on the occasion of the first thematic workshop of the Erasmus […]

(Rome, 22 March 2019) From the 28th of April to the 3rd of May, the partners of the EduBioMed Project will meet for thematic workshops in Jabal Moussa, Lebanon. This will be an occasion to both discuss the project’s activities and state of play, but also to discover two lebanese Biosphere Reserves. EduBioMed is a project […]

(Rome, 8 February 2019) Destinations, such as biospheres, who balance the economic, socio-cultural and environmental dimensions of their biodiversity areas, are granted a biosphere seal by the Responsible Tourism Institute (RTI). This sustainability certification is at the heart of the Biosphere Destination Community, which is of particular importance to the Edu-BioMed project. Indeed, balancing such […]