Sustainable and Innovative Food Systems: The Mediterranean Diet as a Tool for Tourism and Local Development in EUSAIR Communities - 29–30 September 2025, Bari
On 29–30 September 2025, the CIHEAM Bari Campus hosted the international workshop “Sustainable and Innovative Food Systems: The Mediterranean Diet as a Tool for Tourism and Local Development in EUSAIR Communities”, organized by the EUSAIR Presidency of North Macedonia, CIHEAM Bari, DG REGIO, and the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation Platform (EGP), in cooperation with DG AGRI, DG GROW and DG MOVE.
The two-day event gathered regional, national and EU-level stakeholders to discuss how the Mediterranean Diet – recognized by UNESCO and FAO – can become a strategic driver for sustainable tourism, rural development, youth engagement and innovation across the Adriatic-Ionian region.
The opening session featured welcoming remarks from institutional representatives, including CIHEAM Bari, the EUSAIR Presidency of North Macedonia, DG REGIO, DG AGRI, and the Adriatic-Ionian Initiative.
Ambassador Pigliapoco recalled that the Šibenik Declaration of 14 May 2024, adopted by the Foreign Ministers of AII/EUSAIR, endorsed the Joint Declaration of the 3 Fora on the Preservation and Promotion of the Mediterranean Diet. The Mediterranean Diet was recognized as a tool to promote well-being, sustainability, culture and as a way of life oriented towards health, environmental responsibility and shared social and cultural roots.
He also highlighted the crucial role of civil society and the 3 Fora of Cities, Chambers of Commerce, and Universities, stressing that their involvement is essential to ensure that policies have a real impact on the ground. Promoting the Mediterranean Diet not only supports food systems and tourism, but also fosters social cohesion, empowers local communities, and strengthens a common identity in the region.
Finally, Pigliapoco recalled the Memorandum of Understanding signed between AII and CIHEAM Bari in September 2024, which is already generating joint initiatives and concrete project proposals, currently under evaluation within the IPA-ADRION framework.
The programme included:
- Keynote Panel: Why Mediterranean Diet and Sustainable Food Systems Matter for the Adriatic-Ionian Future? – focusing on agrotourism, organic and origin products, bio-districts, cultural heritage and the role of youth and digitalisation.
- Input Session 1: Dialogue with donors – How to make and support the Mediterranean Diet Flagship Partnership an impactful tool, with contributions from Interreg Europe, IPA ADRION, EUROMED, DG AGRI, and Horizon Europe.
- Input Session 2: Learning from the regions, where best practices were presented by stakeholders from Spain, Greece, Italy, Croatia and others.
The second day was dedicated to building an EUSAIR InterPillar Flagship Project on the Mediterranean Diet. After introductory remarks, participants joined three parallel workshops:
- Agrotourism, Organic, Origin Products, Bio-districts, and Culture-Based Rural Tourism
- Ecotourism and Local Quality Food Partnerships
- Youth, Skills and Digital Tools in Food and Tourism
The results of the workshops were consolidated in a final session to shape the flagship proposal and define follow-up actions.
The Bari workshop confirmed the Mediterranean Diet as a strategic tool for the Adriatic-Ionian macro-region: a model for sustainability, innovation and cultural identity. The Adriatic-Ionian Initiative remains committed to working with CIHEAM Bari, EU institutions, national authorities and civil society to ensure that these values are translated into concrete results for the benefit of all communities.