Over the next 4 years, more than 60 researchers from 15 countries will work together to improve the coastal management of the Mediterranean Sea. For the first time under the one research agenda, the EU-funded project will undertake an all-inclusive study of the sea, its coasts and marine ecosystems in a bid to build consensus on the future governance and prosperity of the ailing basin.

The Mediterranean Sea continues to suffer from extreme environmental degradation. Unsustainable activities such as over-exploitation, excessive urbanisation and other factors have also had an impact on the economic livelihood and well-being of the sea's coastal populations.

The PEGASO ('People for ecosystem based governance in assessing sustainable development of ocean and coast') project was funded with EUR 6.99 million under the Environment Theme of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7).

Coordinated by the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona (UAB) in Spain, PEGASO will link science and decision-making processes relating to the way the coast of the Mediterranean Sea is managed at regional, national and local levels. A significant part of the project will entail the creation of an 'atlas' of the Mediterranean Sea - a standardised and shared data platform based on a clear and concise organisation of existing scientific data.

In January 2009, an important milestone was reached with regard to the protection of the Mediterranean. A total of 21 countries signed the Integrated Coastal Zone Management (ICZM) protocol with the aim of protecting coastal regions and treating them as natural and cultural treasures that must be preserved. This legal instrument represents the first of its kind for these regions.

Under PEGASO, a governance system will be established allowing states, regions and economic sectors to collaborate under the protocol's common objective. The project will provide the platform through which 23 participating organisations (including research centres, non-governmental organisations, small businesses and international organisations) will determine specific actions to be applied under the ICZM protocol.

Under the project, researchers will also analyse 11 case studies in the Danube and Nile deltas, the northern coast of the Adriatic Sea, and the islands of the Aegean Sea. This and other research will eventually lead to the creation of a single collection of data, statistics, images, and information on land use, landscapes, forest fires, and other aspects of coastal regions.

The Mediterranean is a major focus of European policies in recent years. The Commission presented in September, his strategy for the governance of the Mediterranean Sea, which, among other areas, touches on environmental and coastal issues, transports and security.