Climate and Mediterranean Fisheries: Ecological and Economic Assessment (CLIM-ECO²).
 

bateau
bateau

poisson climeco²
poisson climeco²

villefranche²
villefranche²

The Mediterranean is one of the regions of the world that will be most affected by climate change. Profound upheavals in fauna and flora are expected in this biodiversity hotspot. Warming will promote the decline of species with a cold affinity, which will seek freshness elsewhere. The populations of certain currently exploited Mediterranean fish will therefore decline significantly over the course of the century. Conversely, warming will also favor the expansion of warm water species, which are often non-native species. On the one hand, these exotic species could have a negative impact on native species and the ecological balance of the Mediterranean. On the other hand, some of these species could also constitute new food resources and therefore offer new commercial outlets.

The CLIM-ECO² project is a multidisciplinary project bringing together biologists, ecologists and economists, which aims, through modeling, to assess the impact of climate change on Mediterranean fisheries, from an ecological point of view (redistribution of stocks ) but also economic (redistribution of income associated with fishing). Understanding how climate change could modify the fishing income of Mediterranean countries is essential for the future well-being of populations. Anticipating climate-induced changes in fish populations aims to predict and minimize the risk of error in long-term investment strategies. Indeed, in a context of overexploitation of marine resources, decision-makers urgently need information and analysis to guide investments.

The CLIM-ECO² initiative is led by an international consortium bringing together various actors, including the Ecology and Conservation Science for Sustainable Seas (ECOSEAS) laboratory and the Scientific Center of Monaco (CSM).

Teams involved in the ClimEco² project:

CSM: Nathalie Hilmi team, Denis Allemand and Vicky Lam
ECOSEAS (UCA):  Dr. Virgnie Raybaud team, Paolo Guidetti, Alexandre Schickele and Emna Ben Lamine

If you want to know more about this project, check out this video!