The second COPEAM-BEI training seminar for journalists on climate change held in Morocco

Ouarzazate and Marrakech, 12 - 14 November 2016

The second training seminar organised by COPEAM in collaboration with the EIB – European Investment Bank and the European Union, was held in Morocco (Ouarzazate and Marrakech) from 12 to 14 November 2016 in the framework of COP22 (world conference on climate). The initiative was addressed to the journalists from the Mediterranean public radios and TVs and was devoted to the topic “Informing and raising awareness about climate challenges and sustainable development”.

The training was aimed at providing the journalists with the basic knowledge about the current climate challenges and environmental present and future scenarios, about the international legal framework and governance on climate, and about the international and national engagements taken by the countries as for climate change adaptation, renewable energies and CO2 reduction.

The first 2 days of the seminar took place in Ouarzazate, where the 10 journalists from Albania, Egypt, Morocco, Romania, Tunisia and Turkey deepened these topics with Gilles Luneau, French journalist with a long experience in environment and agriculture related reporting, Yadh Labbene, Tunisian expert of climate change, Khaled El Nimr representing the EIB, and Maxime La Tella, infrastructure and energy programme manager at the EU in Morocco.

The workshop included a visit to the Ouarzazate solar complex NOOR, one of the main existing solar energy production centres, an excellence in the domain of renewable energies at a global level.

The last day of the seminar was held in Marrakech, where the participants attended a press briefing with representatives of the EIB and visited the Green Zone of the COP22 headquarters.

The Secretary General of COPEAM, Mr. Claudio Cappon, declared: “This workshop wanted to contribute to improve the knowledge of the journalists from the two Mediterranean shores about the climate change challenges, in order to produce and spread a responsible and correct information able to raise awareness among the public and call to action”.