N.E.C.C.A. President, Prof. Maria Papadopoulou, participated in the Fifth Sustainability Summit for south-east Europe and the Mediterranean, organized by ‘The Economist Events for Greece, Cyprus, Malta and southeast Europe’. In her speech she referred to how the pandemic brought about significant changes in the anthropogenic pressures of the natural environment (such as the reduction of gaseous emissions and reduced waste production) while simultaneously bringing about improvements in the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of both land and aquatic ecosystems, by reducing human-induced interventions.
Among other things, Ms. Papadopoulou referred to the limitation of industrial and agricultural activity, the significant changes affecting the ability to meet the water demands of an area (Supply-demand loop) and the urgent need to use digital technology in the field of natural resource management and ecosystems conservation in the post-COVID era.
The reassessment of the Sustainable Development Goals (namely, Objective 6) was particularly highlighted in order to better utilize water resources and water governance within the context of a collective partnership between the public and private sectors with the aim of addressing extreme phenomena (eg. drought, water scarcity) and creating more resilient societies.
