Aim

Widening countries (WC) Malta, Greece, Cyprus, and Bulgaria depend heavily on nature for food security, tourism, and economic development, with sectors like nature-based tourism and the blue economy contributing significantly to employment.

The 4 Demonstration Pilots in Widening Countries deliver practical, scalable solutions to climate and biodiversity challenges, acting as collaboration hubs between academic and non-academic sectors. These hubs provide secondees with real-world experience and foster partnerships across sectors.

Locations

Malta Greece Cyprus Bulgaria

Conservation of species
- 15.6%Poor
- 8.9% Bad
- 22.2% Unknown
Conservation of habitats
- 13.8% Poor
- 58.6% Bad
Climate
- +2.1 °C in year 2022
- +4.1 °C by year 2100
Other
- 2% Urban Green Space
- 7% Urban Tree Cover
- 10% Nature-related tourism
Employment share
- 1.6% Forest-based economy
- 7% Blue economy

Conservation of species
- 42.4% Poor
- 12.5% Bad
- 10.1% Unknown
Conservation of habitats
- 41.6% Poor
- 5.6% Bad
- 4.5% Unknown
Climate
- +1.9 °C in year 2022
- +3.4 °C by year 2100
Other
- 15% Urban Green Space
- 11% Urban Tree Cover
- 8% Nature-related tourism
Employment share
- 1.3% Forest-based economy
- 11% Blue economy

Conservation of species
- 20% Poor
- 3.6% Bad
- 12.7% Unknown
Conservation of habitats
- 19.1% Poor
- 35.7% Bad
Climate
- +2.0 °C in year 2022
- +3.5 °C by year 2100
Other
- 2% Urban Green Space
- 4% Urban Tree Cover
- 6% Nature-related tourism
Employment share
- 1.4% Forest-based economy
- 8% Blue economy

Conservation of species
- 31.1% Poor
- 3.2% Bad
- 32.2% Unknown
Conservation of habitats
- 79.3% Poor
- 5.3% Bad
- 3.2% Unknown
Climate
- +2.3 °C in year 2022
- +3.5 °C by year 2100
Other
- 4% Urban Green Space
- 37% Urban Tree Cover
- 23% Nature-related tourism
Employment share
- 2.9% Forest-based economy
- 2% Blue economy

These Mediterranean countries are more vulnerable to climate change and have higher warming rates compared to the global average of +1.3°C since the pre-industrial baseline (Berkeley Earth, berkeleyearth.org) and face a range of challenges in innovation. Most notably, low R&D spending and limited government support for business R&D are exacerbated in the environmental and sustainability sectors.

Historically, these areas have received less attention than traditional economic sectors. Without targeted efforts to foster R&I, these countries risk falling further behind in their sustainability goals, ultimately affecting their capacity to leverage nature as a key driver of economic growth