Shaping the Mediterranean into a leading ecotourism destination
Since 2013 a group of conservation and tourism organizations have been working together towards a vision of establishing the Mediterranean as a leading ecotourism destination. A series of EU projects including ENI CBC MED Programme MEET project, Interreg Mediterranean Programme DestiMED and DestiMED PLUS projects have worked tirelessly to develop a new model for ecotourism development which brings together protected areas and the tourism industry to develop ecotourism that benefits nature conservation and local communities, evidenced through a robust sustainability monitoring system.
MEET Network Timeline
In 2018 the MEET Network Association was founded to represent this new ecotourism model and provide a membership network for protected areas who are committed to embracing a new way of developing tourism in the Mediterranean.
Today MEET has 11 Protected Area Members and applicants and is continuing on its journey to shaping the Mediterranean into a leading ecotourism destination.
Our Values, Your Experience
COMPASSION
Our approach and products support conservation and local communities through ecotourism, complementing travellers’ sense of stewardship and desire to help.
CONNECTION
Our experiences create deep connections between travellers and the destination, the local environment, local people, and ultimately the travellers themselves.
COMMUNITY
We work together with the local community to create locally-crafted travel experiences that benefit local people.
CONSERVATION
Our ecotourism approach, standards and products organically and actively integrate conservation efforts and knowledge in the Med.
Who we are
Alessandro Galli - President
Alessandro Galli is a macro-ecologist, sustainability scientist, wannabe geographer, with a passion for anthropology and human behavior. Currently, he works as Mediterranean-MENA Program Director at Global Footprint Network. His research focuses on the overall human metabolism and how it squares with the planet’s limits, especially in key societal sectors such as food, tourism and education. As of July 2022, Alessandro is the elected president of the MEET Network Association.
Omar Abi Ali
Omar Abi Ali is Ecotourism Coordinator at Shouf Biosphere Reserve in Lebanon. Omar has more than 6 years of experience in nature conservation and nature-based tourism. He has planned and coordinated several projects in rural tourism development, nature conservation and environmental solutions. Omar has helped to raise the profile of Shouf as an internationally recognized protected area and ecotourism destination.
Jeremy Sampson
Jeremy is a globally recognized leader and coalition builder, advocating for systems change that improves the impact of the travel and tourism sector on communities and the environment. Through a variety of roles in industry, academia, and civil society, he has helped to build industry and government capacities to adopt new measures of success, accelerate their response to the climate crisis, develop and promote more inclusive visitor economies, and integrate sustainability across the value chain.
Antonio Troya
Licensed in Biological Sciences, specialized in Environmental Biology, from the Autonomous University of Madrid. Antonio has carried out diverse senior positions in the Spanish State Administration and 9 years in the European Institutions, such as in the European Commission and in the European Council. In June 2010, Antonio was appointed as Director of the Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature (IUCN-Med).
MEET Board of Directors
The Global Footprint Network is the leading organization (NGO) for Ecological Footprint research and application. It was established in 2003 to advance sustainable natural resource use. The Global Footprint Network’s scientifically peer-reviewed methodology provides data for informed decision-making at all levels.
The Travel Foundation is a leading international non-profit organisation, and one of the leading independent bodies in the travel and tourism arena. Since 2003, The Travel Foundation has been advocating for a travel and tourism sector that centres communities and the environment and progresses towards a more equitable and climate positive future.
The IUCN Centre for Mediterranean Cooperation works to bridge gaps between science, policy, management and action in order to conserve nature and accelerate the transition towards sustainable development in the Mediterranean. IUCN Med was founded in 2010 to address threats to biodiversity in the Mediterranean, a key tourism destination.
The Shouf Biosphere Reserve includes: AlShouf Cedar Nature Reserve (established in 1996), the Ammiq Wetland protected area, and twenty two villages surrounding the biosphere from the eastern and western sides of the Barouk and Niha mountains. The SBR is the largest nature reserve and has become a popular destination for ecotourism activities.
Commercial Partners
MEET is partnered with global leader and largest travel B-Corp, Intrepid Travel, to make it´s unique experiences available to wider markets. Learn more.
WWF Travel will be including MEET’s diverse portfolio of ecotourism experiences in their catalogue of conservation-focused tours. Learn more.