Mediterranean Green Belt
Restore one of the world’s great forests
Restoring Mediterranean forests — for nature, climate, and communities.
COUNTRIES in the mediterranean
kilometers -10,500 miles- of coastline
PEOPLE CONNECTED TO MEDITERRANEAN FORESTS
An Alliance for the Restoration of Mediterranean Forests
🌲 At the heart of the world’s #2 biodiversity hotspot
♻️ Store the equivalent of 2,000 years of EU emissions
🧑🤝🧑 Connect 900 million people, residents and visitors
The Mediterranean Green Belt is a bold environmental initiative — unique in its scale and in its promise for nature, climate, and people. Together, we can create a lasting legacy for present and future generations.
The Mediterranean forest is more than a landscape. It is one of the great forests on Earth. It is also part of a shared Mediterranean heritage — shaping cultures, livelihoods, and identities across continents for millennia. Restoring Mediterranean forests means restoring resilience within one of the world’s most historically and ecologically significant regions.
But these forests also shape Mediterranean life. With 550 million residents and over 350 million visitors each year, drawn by its timeless beauty and culture, the region connects 900 million people whose well-being and experiences are enriched by its forest landscapes.
The Mediterranean Green Belt is a citizen-and community-driven effort supporting the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) in its goal to restore 8 million hectares of Mediterranean forests–encompassing more than 5 billion trees–by 2030.
The Mediterranean Green Belt is our shared commitment: to mobilize organizations and the public at large to restore this vital resource — for nature, climate, and resilient societies.
Let’s Build the Mediterranean Green Belt Together!
The Mediterranean is one of the regions most affected by climate change. Temperatures have already risen by 1.3 °C — faster than the global average. Every year, the equivalent of 560,000 soccer fields goes up in flames. These fires are becoming more frequent and more intense, destroying millions of trees and animal lives, while desertification and erosion advance at alarming speed.
The Mediterranean is home to around 25,000 plant species, nearly half of which exist nowhere else on Earth. Yet today, one in five animal species is threatened with extinction, largely due to forest loss. Restoring Mediterranean forests helps protect countless forms of life and maintain the delicate balance of our planet’s biodiversity.
Restoring Mediterranean forests also helps offset part of our daily CO₂ emissions and slow climate change. Restored forests absorb up to twice as much CO₂ and are more resilient to heat, drought, and fire. Our actions contribute to the European LIFE FOREST CO₂ initiative.
Every tree we plant or help thrive, and every square meter of Mediterranean forests we restore, brings life back to one of the world’s most vital ecosystems — essential for nature, for climate, and for all of us.
Restoring Mediterranean Forests to Strengthen a Shared Future
The Mediterranean forest — breathtaking and rich in biodiversity — is vanishing at an alarming rate due to deforestation, fires, climate change, and growing human pressures. This situation calls for collective action.
But remarkable change is possible. Together, we can revive the majestic Mediterranean forest, protect its unique biodiversity, and safeguard a shared world heritage.
🌱 Join the movement and support the restoration of Mediterranean forests. Be part of a collective effort for a greener Mediterranean and a healthier planet.
Every moment counts — help restore Mediterranean forests.
The Mediterranean forest is part of our shared Mediterranean heritage. Restoring it is a commitment to continuity — for nature, for climate, and for generations to come.
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With public support, the Mediterranean Green Belt turns collective action into measurable restoration across the Mediterranean.
Our Top Priorities
Restoring and sustainably managing Mediterranean forests is essential for people, nature, and climate.
The Mediterranean Green Belt brings together concrete actions to strengthen forest landscapes — from planting and protecting trees to supporting ecosystems and maintaining the balance between soil, vegetation, biodiversity, and climate.
sustainability
Restoring Mediterranean forests supports lasting ecological, economic, social, and cultural benefits.
Biodiversity
Mediterranean forests are home to countless endemic species found nowhere else on Earth.
water supply
Mediterranean forests filter and regulate rainwater, helping ensure the availability of clean water for people, agriculture, and wildlife.
Climate
Mediterranean forests are a powerful carbon sink, storing CO₂ in trees and soils and playing a crucial role in local and global climate regulation.
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Beyond borders — a shared Mediterranean heritage.
The Mediterranean Green Belt connects landscapes that have linked civilizations for centuries — restoring forests while strengthening the resilience of a shared region.
The United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 15 focuses on conserving life on land: protecting and restoring ecosystems, managing forests sustainably, halting and reversing land degradation, and stopping biodiversity loss.
We support the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, working to restore ecosystems and halt their degradation.
Want to learn more or share ideas to help grow the Mediterranean Green Belt?
We’d love to hear from you.