Islands Korčula and Vis to take part in the PRISMI Project which aims to support the development of Renewable Energy Sources (RES) on Mediterranean Islands.
When you think of Croatia, images your mind summons are probably along the lines of sun, clean and clear waters, nature, fresh produce… and you would be correct. Croatia has the perfect makeup for a holiday destination but is also fast-becoming known for much more. Green tourism, organic farming – these are positive trends which are making their way to the forefront. We recently wrote about ‘Croatia becoming the Leader for Organic Farming in Europe’ – which is a title I would love to see come true. So, it makes sense that Europe is turning its attention to our islands to develop sustainable energy solutions.
PRISMI is a project which aims to support local and regional authorities of Mediterranean islands in making a transition towards low carbon and climate change resilient energy systems in a cost-effective way or in other words – Promoting RES intergration for Smart Mediterranean islands.
International stakeholders and researchers met in Zagreb to plan strategies and sustainable approaches with the goal to create a toolkit for the evaluation of Renewable Energy Sources, focusing on Mediterranean Islands.
Mediterranean islands are largely dependent on imported fossil fuels to cover their energy needs and generate electricity. This imposes a heavy burden on island communities regarding energy security, high-energy costs and environmental pollution.
The PRISMI Project is co-financed by the European Regional Development Fund. The development of an integrated toolkit for energy scenarios, which will be able to map Renewable Energy Sources and analyse electrical grids is the goal.
The toolkit will support the development of Sustainable Energy Action Plans (SEAP) to five study areas: the Akamas Peninsula (Cyprus), the islands of Korcula and Vis (Croatia), the island of Tilos (Greece), the island of Favignana (Italy) and the region of Gozo (Malta).
Along with the interim project meeting in Zagreb, a technical networking session was held. The idea of this meetup was to bring together stakeholders from Universities, research institutes and various organisations who support the islands on issues related to green-development and renewable energy, so they could share knowledge and prior experience with project partners to support each other and future activities.
In the coming months, the toolkit will take its final form, so five regional engagement workshops will be held in each partner country to raise wider awareness of the islands’ RES potential, empower users to use the foundation – toolkit, SEAPs, PRISMI Network and get constructive feedback in the process.
The final conference will be held in Athens, 2018 and will be the culmination of these workshops.
Like any long-term solution, the road to developing and maintaining renewable energy will be a long one, but oh so worth it. We look forward to following the progress of the PRISMI Project.
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