• English
  • Français
  • العربية
Follow us
Union for the Mediterranean – UfMUnion for the Mediterranean – UfMUnion for the Mediterranean – UfMUnion for the Mediterranean – UfM     Mediterranean Day
  • Who we are
    • Who we are

      The Union for the Mediterranean is an intergovernmental institution bringing together the European Union Member States and 16 countries from the Southern and Eastern shores of the Mediterranean to promote dialogue and cooperation.

      Overview   

    • Who we are

      • Member States
      • Meet the team
      • Partners
      • History
    • Key documents

      UfM Annual Report 2021 Regional Integration
  • What we do
    • Notre action

      The UfM seeks to enhance regional cooperation, dialogue and the implementation of concrete projects and initiatives with tangible impact on our citizens to address three strategic objectives: human development, stability and integration.

      Overview   

    • Inclusive Development

      • Economic Development and Employment
      • Higher Education & Research
      • Social & Civil Affairs

      Sustainable development

      • Water, Environment and Blue Economy
      • Transport & Urban Development
      • Energy & Climate Action
    • How we work

      • Political Framework
      • Regional Dialogue Platforms
      • Projects and Initiatives
  • Work with us
    • The UfM Secretariat is the operational platform of the Union for the Mediterranean. The staff of the UfM is made of more than 17 nationalities working in a multicultural environment that fosters cooperation and intercultural communication and exchange.

    • Work with us

      • Vacancies
      • Secondments
      • Internships
      • Procurement
      • Roster of experts
  • Info center
    • Info center

      Find our latest press releases, press invitations, visual identity, key institutional documents, photos and other relevant information


      Download the UfM Visual Identity Guidelines and Logos (zip file)   

    • Info center

      • Media corner
      • News
      • Agenda
      • Publications and key documents
      • Human Stories of the Mediterranean
    • UfM in the Media

      6 March 2023 – Alghad.com – المؤتمر الدولي لمصادر المياه بعمان: تحديد للفرص القابلة للتنفيذ
      View article
      27 February 2023 – Huffington Post – “Nel Mediterraneo è sfida per l’energia, 250 progetti per portarla da Sud a Nord”
      View article
      18 February 2023 – The Jordan Times – Regional Transport Action Plan to propel shift towards sustainability — UfM official
      View article
      See more
  • Contact

Bertrand Piccard

Exploration is fundamental if we want to progress

A psychiatrist turned pilot. Few people can boast such a career change. Bertrand Piccard can, he even did much more than that. He was the first man to fly around the world in a solar glider: The Solar Impulse. This trip of a lifetime made him relevant to now tour the world with other means, to convince people in power that renewable energies and a new industrial strategy are invaluable for the future of our planet.

“By touring the world without stopovers in an air-balloon, by doing it again in a solar glider, I created a special relationship with our planet”. This planet, it is now Piccard’s dream and goal to protect it. And to do so, the serial-explorer decided to share his scientific input with the leaders of the world. “If I come back from an experience like that and I tell the political, economic, financial, industrial world that the Earth is beautiful, they won’t be convinced. So, I came back saying that clean and efficient technologies, renewable energies are now extremely mature and profitable for them”.

This is the new aim of the Solar Impulse Foundation: identify a thousand financially profitable solutions to protect the environment. “We already have 765 solutions that prove that the environment’s protection is more profitable that its destruction! Those solutions can be technologies, products, materials, machines, energy sources…”. This portfolio of solutions, the visionary pilot is planning on bringing it to heads of states, enterprises and institutions to prove that carbon-neutrality is achievable.

Bertrand Piccard is used to undertake seemingly impossible tasks. When he decided to begin a world tour in a solar plane, people thought he was crazy. They told him he would either not fly at all or crash. “So, when I saw the lights of Abu Dhabi coming closer, I told myself – this is the moment of truth, if I land a metre short, the whole project will have been a failure.” But Piccard landed perfectly in the last city on his world journey and the relief and pride he felt was unimaginable.

Four years later, the Swiss pioneer is a bit nostalgic of that plane which safely carried him around the globe even though it was a completely experimental machine. Flying over the blue planet, looking at it from a brand-new angle, admiring sunrises and sunsets, but also witnessing pollution from above, inspired the pilot even more to promote new ways of living, consuming and producing. This should be the case especially for regions which are already feeling the disastrous effects of climate change.

“In the Mediterranean region, tropical diseases, droughts, floods and the number of climactic refugees are seen rising. But in that region, it can become a factor of unification. I think that the fight against climate change will enable an extraordinary cooperation. Some countries will produce wind, some sun, some hydrogen. Others will be there to consume it. So, alliances are possible”.

To convince populations to get on this renewable energy and clean technology train, Piccard proposes not to impose restrictions but to teach people to do better, to produce better, to reuse, to think of new ways to live in peace with our environment. “This will create new economic prospects, industrial prospects, financial prospect which will allow even the poorest region to develop without polluting anymore. We need to realise that if we keep going the way we are going, we will lose jobs, we will see more suffering, more inequalities, more social instability. Whereas environment protection and renewable energies would allow to stabilise potential conflicts”.

For Bertrand Piccard, 2021 will be the year during which his foundation will present its portfolio of a thousand solutions for a greener world. But this is only the beginning for younger generations “young people need to express their will to change path. The path we were on for the last 20, 30 years was dangerous. The youth needs to not back this polluting and unjust world we lived in”. The explorer believes that after the pain and suffering of the pandemic, we need to grab the opportunity to turn over a new leaf. “It is also an extraordinary opportunity to build something new. But we can’t just rebuild what we lost. We now need to invest in innovation and solutions to protect the environment. And that is the role of political leaders. The political world needs to take its responsibility and join the movement.”

Who we are

  • Member States
  • Meet the team
  • Partners
  • History

What we do

  • Economic Development & Employment
  • Higher Education & Research
  • Social & Civil Affairs
  • Water, Environment and Blue Economy
  • Transport & Urban Development
  • Energy & Climate Action

How we work

  • Political Framework
  • Regional Dialogue Platforms
  • Projects and Initiatives

Work with us

  • Vacancies
  • Secondments
  • Internships
  • Procurement
  • Roster of experts

Info centre

  • Media corner
  • News
  • Agenda
  • Publications and key documents
  • Human Stories of the Mediterranean
  • Photo gallery
  • Video gallery
Co-financé par l'Union européenne  -  Cookie Privacy  |  Privacy Privacy  |  Legal notice
  • Who we are
    • Member States
    • Meet the team
    • Partners
    • History
  • What we do
    • Economic Development and Employment
    • Higher Education & Research
    • Social & Civil Affairs
    • Water, Environment and Blue Economy
    • Transport & Urban Development
    • Energy & Climate Action
  • How we work
    • Political Framework
    • Regional Dialogue Platforms
    • Projects and Initiatives
  • Work with us
    • Vacancies
    • Secondments
    • Internships
    • Procurement
    • Roster of experts
  • Info centre
    • Media center
    • News
    • Agenda
    • Publications and key documents
  • Contact
  • Social media
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Youtube
    • Linkedin
    • Flickr
  • English
  • Français
  • العربية
  • English
  • Français
  • العربية
Union for the Mediterranean – UfM
/* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: Loop item in Megamenu – Latest Ufm in the news - start */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* ----------------------------------------- */ /* Content Template: Loop item in Megamenu – Latest Ufm in the news - end */ /* ----------------------------------------- */

 

We are using cookies to give you the best experience on our website.

You can find out more about which cookies we are using or switch them off in settings.


3rd Party Cookies

Powered by  GDPR Cookie Compliance
Cookies Overview

This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.

Read more

3rd Party Cookies

This website uses Google Analytics to collect anonymous information such as the number of visitors to the site, and the most popular pages.

Keeping this cookie enabled helps us to improve our website.

Please enable Strictly Necessary Cookies first so that we can save your preferences!