Cases from the Middle East
Red Sea Marine Peace Park
The Red Sea Marine Peace Park is an exemplar of transboundary cooperation for planning of a marine protected area. At the time the 1994 Jordan–Israel peace accord was signed, Jordan and Israel committed to: (a) protect natural coastal and marine habitats, particularly coral reefs; (b) improve sea water quality; (c) prevent water pollution from marine and land sources; and (d) develop oil spill emergency response efforts and preparedness. In retrospect, the RSMPP program has been the most ambitious attempt to bring about Israeli–Jordanian environmental cooperation in the Gulf of Aqaba (Portman & Teff-Seker, 2017).
Michelle E. Portman & Yael Teff-Seker (2017): Factors of success and failure for transboundary environmental cooperation: projects in the Gulf of Aqaba, Journal of Environmental Policy & Planning.
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Gabay, S. (1997). Israel Ministry of the Environment, Binational Red Sea Marine Peace Park. Israel Environ Bulletin, 20(4), 8–11.
Portman, M. E. (2007). Zoning design for cross-border marine protected areas: The Red Sea Marine Peace Park case study. Ocean & Coastal Management, 50(7), 499–522.
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Portman, M. E., & Teff-Seker, Y. (2016). Remembering the Red Sea Marine Peace Park. In P. Mackelworth (Ed.), Marine transboundary conservation and protected areas (pp. 89–110). London: Routledge.
Roulin A., et al. (2017). ‘Nature Knows No Boundaries’: The Role of Nature Conservation in Peacebuilding. Trends in Ecology & Evolution.
The Jordan River Peace Park
EcoPeace Middle East is a unique organization at the forefront of the environmental peacemaking movement. As a tri-lateral organization that brings together Jordanian, Palestinian, and Israeli environmentalists, EcoPeace Middle East believes that the areas of Al Bakoura-Peace Island and the Three Bridges sites have great potential to be developed into the Jordan River Peace Park. The Jordan River Peace Park – a concrete first step towards rehabilitating the Jordan River, endorsed by the mayors and communities on both sides of the River.
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