Every 28 November, Mediterranean Day invites us to reflect on the connections that bind our region together. In 2025, the celebration carries a special significance: thirty years of the Barcelona Process, three decades spent strengthening cooperation and bringing about a shared, just and peaceful future for the Mediterranean region.
With this year’s campaign, We need to talk, Mediterranean, we commit to fostering more and deeper dialogue between countries, cultures, communities, and peoples. Dialogue is, at its core, born from encounters between people – whether at the institutional level or in everyday life. The task ahead is clear: we must work together to take the conversation further, bring it closer to people, and imagine the Mediterranean we want to build.
At Centro dello Sviluppo Creativo Danilo Dolci ETS and CESIE ETS, we believe that meaningful dialogue is only possible when people have the power to shape the future of their territories. This is the common thread running through our work across the Mediterranean, from Sicily to Tunisia, from Spain to Jordan and beyond. Through initiatives such as CLOSER and HERITAS, we support the participation and active engagement of individuals and social groups, to bring about stronger connections between communities and the systems that serve them.
CLOSER: designing local services that listen to communities
CLOSER embodies the message of “bringing dialogue back to the people” by focusing on the everyday realities of citizens and their relationship with local services. By involving individuals, public authorities, and civil society organisations, the project promotes models of co-design that ensure social services are closer to people – more accessible, more relevant, and more capable of responding to real needs.
By listening to those who are often unheard, CLOSER builds trust between institutions and communities, and creates spaces where decisions reflect lived experience. In a changing Mediterranean, this kind of participatory approach is essential to strengthening resilience and social cohesion.
HERITAS: heritage as a bridge for shared development
HERITAS works to valorise the rich cultural heritage of Sicily and Tunisia, not only as a legacy to protect but as a resource for sustainable, responsible, and community-based development. By engaging local actors, artisans, municipalities, and cultural organisations, the project supports a model of tourism that reflects the needs, aspirations, and identities of local communities.
Heritage becomes a space where everyone can take part in shaping their environment – identifying what should be preserved, how it should be shared, and how it can foster their own economic and social development. Through this process, dialogue within the Mediterranean becomes concrete: built on common experiences, shared traditions, and a commitment to cooperation.
Towards a Mediterranean region shaped by its people
As we celebrate Mediterranean Day 2025 reflecting on the 30 years since the Barcelona Process and imagining the next 30, we look to a future shaped by dialogue across territories, communities, and generations.
The Mediterranean we want – inclusive, sustainable, and rooted in mutual understanding – depends on engaged people who actively participate and whose voices matter, where cooperation thrives, dialogue leads to action, and connected communities design our shared future.
For further information about CLOSER
Visit https://danilodolci.org/en/project/closer/ or contact Antonella Alessi: antonella.alessi@danilodolci.org.
For further information about HERITAS
Visit https://cesie.org/en/project/heritas/ or contact Antonina Albanese: antonina.albanese@cesie.org.
