Maria Snoussi: Using science to fight climate change

Maria Snoussi is a coastal geoscientist. In that regard, she knows her native Mediterranean coasts like the back of her hand, especially those of her country. During her student life and later while working, she travelled the region and the rest of the world to learn more about the functioning of coastal environments and their vulnerability to climate and environmental changes.

During her tenure at the head of the Scientific Council of the National Institute for Sustainable Development Research (IRD) in France, she enriched her knowledge of sustainability science in intertropical and Mediterranean regions. It was the first time that a woman, a foreigner, and moreover from a southern country, headed such a Council. This is nothing short of extraordinary, considering the under-representation of women in science, where less than a third of the world’s researchers are women.

One might wonder what it takes for a woman and a foreigner to end up at the head of such an institution. Engaging in a conversation with her could give you some clues: seated on a chair, her posture is both elegant and relaxed. Maria Snoussi looks you straight in the eye, always with a spark of amusement in her gaze. But above all, she is passionate about her work and about making it accessible to people.

For the researcher, communication about climate and environmental change is essential to educate and raise awareness among decision-makers and help them make informed choices that will impact citizens’ lives:

“We must inform and enlighten public opinion using solid sciences, including social and human sciences, but also local and traditional knowledge.”

The Mediterranean is one of the most vulnerable regions to climate change. “We are facing a cocktail of global challenges: global warming, ocean acidification, accelerated biodiversity loss, ecosystem degradation…”. The scientist emphasizes that Mediterranean countries must address these challenges as a region and go beyond national policies. “When it comes to regional and global challenges, states will not be able to respond individually. It is important to have a common and shared vision.” However, her discourse is poised, just like her body language when she speaks. She sees the world through clear lenses and seems to understand that the answers to overcoming our challenges might be found in the middle ground. “At the same time, it is necessary to develop national and local strategies that meet the needs of communities and decision-makers. Decentralised cooperation between Mediterranean regions allows the construction and development of common knowledge and practices”.

In addition to her time at IRD, the Moroccan researcher has been a member of the steering committee of the Mediterranean Network of Experts on Climate and Environmental Change (MedECC) – of which she is still a part – that produced the first scientific report on the impact of climate and environmental change in the Mediterranean, whose alarming conclusions confirmed our intuitions about the region’s situation. The report originates from the political endorsement of the UfM and its Member States, which highlighted the need for more scientific-based data on climate change in the Mediterranean and that supported the creation of the MedECC network in 2015.

Maria Snoussi co-directed the research conducted for this study, and her expertise has earned her awards and a seat at various tables, from Rabat University to the CIESM committee on coastal systems. She has also led numerous projects, and her expertise has earned her a seat on various national, regional (MedWet, MedGOOS, BlueMed…), and international (GOOS, IOCEA…) commissions. She is currently heavily involved in integrated coastal zone management plans, including their adaptation to climate change

The coastal expert cherishes her region and trusts that countries, cities and cultures will come together in the most constructive way. “All Mediterranean countries are seeing fast demographic, social, cultural, economic and ecologic changes. But there is a powerful will from both sides of the Mediterranean, each at their own level, to build together a healthy, stable and prosper Mediterranean”.