In the last two years, MedCities actively participated in the debate on the new (and revised) Mediterranean Sustainable Development Strategy 2026-2035, which took place within the works of the Mediterranean Commission for Sustainable Development, which would replace the 2016-2025 strategy. Key contributions include:  

• Recognition of local authorities as key implementers of the strategy, essential for its success. 

• Need to provide them with the necessary human and financial resources to implement it and fulfill their recognized role. 

• Contributions regarding biodiversity, consumption reduction, demand management, and wastewater treatment. 

• Continuation of the two flagship initiatives we currently manage plus a new one accepted as a proposal by MedCities: the Zero Net Cities working group. 

Finally, the parties (the states) formally adopted the new MSSD 2026-2035 at the plenary session. 

COP24 recognises the role of local authorities as key to the effective implementation of the Mediterranean Strategy as the tool for the localisation of Sustainable Development Goals in the Mediterranean. 

The political declaration approved by the parties recognises for the first time the role of local authorities in the implementation of the policies of the Barcelona Convention and the Mediterranean Action Plan as key players for the implementation and their responsibilities too. 

The secretary general, Josep Canals, took the floor to address the states delegations to state the recognition of these important steps forward taken by the Strategy regarding the role of the local authorities for the first time at these COP of the Barcelona Convention: “At MedCities, we celebrate this milestone, while reminding that this recognition must be accompanied by adequate financial and human resources, because the success of implementing the SDGs depends on it—also at the State level, since 60–70% of the SDGs rely on local-level implementation. Help us to help you, to help our citizens and our sea, in the end.” 

MedCities invited to key side-events  

At the COP24 -Barcelona Convention, MedCities Secretary General, Josep Canals, participated in some side events to present some of the projects we are working on linked to biodiversity protection.  

During the session made to present the Mediterranean Strategy for Sustainable Development, MedCities Secretary General presented the 2 current flagship initiatives and a new one proposed by the network and incorporated the association carries on behalf or as a co-host of the UNEP/MAP secretariat, which are: 

• MedUrbanTools open resources platform. 

• Istanbul Environmental Friendly Award for Mediterranean Cities, for which MedCities acts as a technical secretariat. 

• ZeroNet Cities Working Group, meant to become a working group among Mediterranean cities to be aligned with the NetZeroCities project and the EU Mission Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities which wants to deliver 112 climate-neutral and smart cities (some of them members of the network) by 2030 and ensure they act as experimentation and innovation hubs so that all European cities follow suit by 2050. This is the new one incorporated from a proposal of MedCities during the revision works. 

At the IUCN Mediterranean session «Towards a Coordinated Technical and Scientific Support Mechanism for the Implementation of the Global Biodiversity Framework in the Mediterranean Region», the Secretary General stressed the need for a technical support centre for the Mediterranean, a structure that exists in other continents but not in this crucial region of the world.  

MedCities participated in the IUCN Mediterranean session on «Urban Med Alliance in Plastics», a work led by IUCN Med to build a city-driven initiative to combat plastic pollution through urban action. To that end, we work on coastal cities and waste management working groups, and we are partners of the Blue Mission Med, from the European Mission Oceans. Canals offered the network to amplify the coalition for the prevention of plastics, which was very well received by promoters. 

At the 24th Conference of the Parties to the Barcelona Convention (BC COP 24), Plan Bleu, ETC-UMA and partners of the Interreg Euro-MED Natural Heritage Mission — including MedCities — co-organized a side event focused on accelerating forest and wetland restoration across the Mediterranean. 

The MedCities Secretary General highlighted member-city initiatives on climate resilience and green/blue infrastructure: Ancona’s Forest Contract, pond and river renaturation efforts in Rome and Barcelona, the dunes re-creation by Barcelona Metropolitan Area and MedCities capacity-building actions such as Barcelona Academy for Mediterranean Municipalities (2nd edition), the Resilient Cities Working Group, and some of the activities from the NaturIncMed project. 

Furthermore, and during the Plenary Session, Mrs. Tatjana Hema, UNEP/MAP Coordinator reported on Activities carried out in the framework of UNEP/MAP since the 23rd Meeting of the Contracting Parties (COP 23) , and did an explicit mention to MedCities and the Memorandum of Understanding signed with the Mediterranean association that makes MedCities a facilitator in the implementation of policies and the Mediterranean sustainable development strategies. 

The municipality of Almeria is the winner of the 5th edition of the Istanbul Environment-Friendly City Award  

COP24 also held the award ceremony of the fifth edition of the Istanbul Environment Friendly City Award on Thursday, 4 December 2025. This edition distinguished Almería as the winning city, recognising its outstanding performance across climate action, including through its Municipal Climate Change Plan (PMCC), biodiversity protection, integrated planning, and water management. Balikesir (Türkiye) ranked second, whereas Antalya, one of MedCities’ members, ranked third in this competition.   

In total, 10 applications were received. The experts assessing the applications highlighted their increased number compared to previous editions and that the top 3 cities demonstrate not only a strong vision but also the capacity and tools to deliver long-term transformation, serving as regional benchmarks for sustainability-oriented urban development.  

As in previous editions, MedCities played an enabling role throughout the process, supporting the dissemination of the award among its network, facilitating 2 regional webinars to introduce the award and answer potential questions, coordinating the team of experts in charge of assessing the applications and arranging the trip to the ceremony for the winning municipality.