SIRENA Project kicked-off in Athens: Accelerating Nature-Based Solutions for Mediterranean Water Resilience
The PRIMA Foundation funded SIRENA project "Streamlining Nature-Based Solutions for resilient and sustainable water management in the Mediterranean region" officially kicked off with its inaugural consortium meeting in Athens from 1 to 3 July 2026.
Hosted by the project coordinator, the Sanitary Engineering Laboratory of the National Technical University of Athens (SEL NTUA), the three-day meeting brought together partners from from across the Mediterranean region to establish a shared vision, present the project’s objectives and implementation framework, and coordinate the activities of the first implementation period.
SIRENA aims to accelerate the large-scale deployment and mainstreaming of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) to address some of the Mediterranean region’s most pressing water challenges, including drought, flooding, water scarcity and water-quality issues. The project’s outcomes will converge into the Mediterranean Water Resilience Framework: a replicable, multisectoral decision-support blueprint designed to support the scaling-up of Nature-based Solutions across Mediterranean regions.
Over the next three years, the project will demonstrate, monitor and upscale Nature-based Solutions across six WaterMED Labs, organised into three cross-continent Hubs, each pairing a European “Origin Lab” with a North African “Implementation Lab” facing similar water-related challenges. This approach will facilitate the transfer, adaptation and reapplication of proven solutions across different geographical, environmental and socioeconomic contexts.
Connecting six WaterMED Labs across the Mediterranean
SIRENA aims to accelerate the large-scale deployment and mainstreaming of Nature-based Solutions (NbS) to address some of the Mediterranean’s most urgent water challenges, including drought, flooding, water scarcity and water-quality degradation.
At the heart of the project are six WaterMED Labs, organised into three cross-border Hubs. Each Hub connects a European “Origin Lab” with a North African “Implementation Lab” facing similar challenges, enabling proven solutions to be transferred, adapted and reapplied across different environmental and socioeconomic contexts.
The first Hub connects rainwater and stormwater harvesting for island resilience in Mykonos, Greece, with nature-based stormwater management and reuse in urban Tunis, Tunisia.
The second brings together constructed wetlands supporting water availability and biodiversity in the agricultural catchments of Emilia-Romagna, Italy, with rainwater-harvesting and agroforestry solutions for rural water security in the Fès region of Morocco.
The third Hub links nature-based tertiary wastewater treatment and reuse at the Manlleu and Centelles wastewater treatment plants in Osona, Catalonia, Spain, with constructed wetlands supporting water reuse and migratory-bird habitat restoration in Hurghada, Egypt.
Through these cross-border connections, the WaterMED Labs will become spaces for demonstration, monitoring, learning and collaboration, helping successful Nature-based Solutions move from individual sites ,towards wider Mediterranean application.
Three days of collaboration and knowledge exchange
The Athens kick-off meeting opened with an introduction to SIRENA’s vision, structure and objectives by the coordinating team of SEL NTUA.
During the sessions that followed, the project partners presented their expertise and respective roles, while work-package leaders outlined the scientific, technical and strategic activities planned for the project.
Discussions focused on the implementation and monitoring of Nature-based Solutions, the operation of the project’s demonstration sites, participatory governance and stakeholder engagement, digital innovation, communication, and the transfer of knowledge between European and North African regions.
The meeting provided also an important opportunity for partners to align their priorities, establish effective collaboration mechanisms and jointly plan the first steps towards the successful implementation of SIRENA.
Co-creation and collaboration Workshop
Through iterative dialogue and the organisation of a participatory workshop on the 3rd day of the meeting, the partners established the project’s scientific and technical approach, the activities planned for each WaterMED Lab, and the mechanisms that will support collaboration, knowledge transfer and stakeholder participation.
The meeting marked an important first step in establishing strong cooperation across the consortium and laying the foundations for the successful implementation of SIRENA.
A shared European commitment
Hosted in Athens by the Sanitary Engineering Laboratory of the National Technical University of Athens (SEL NTUA), the meeting concluded with a strong commitment from all partners to work together towards more sustainable and resilient water management in the Mediterranean region.
