For those of us who live beside it, the sea is of inestimable value

We are a nation that looks at the world across the breadth of the sea. Here our ancestors found a source of life. Here, throughout our history, we have sought work, and here we like to seek inspiration. Some of Slovenia's most recognisable natural riches, cultural masterpieces and culinary specialities come from this part of the country, from these places between the sea and the wind. And since it was here that the Slovene identity was tempered, we have long known that it is impossible to set a value on the sea.

Just as the sea is timeless, our concern for it, understandably, is limitless.

We feel a special duty of care towards the sea, and it is therefore with a full sense of responsibility that we join in with efforts for responsible management of marine resources. We are aware that pressures on the marine environment are growing every day, and thus we seek partners in our endeavours and forge alliances. Within these endeavours, joint and coordinated action by Mediterranean countries and other countries in the responsible implementation of sustainable development goals is something that we consider to be of decisive importance.

Slovenia therefore assumes the two-year presidency of the Mediterranean Action Plan with a strong desire to strengthen connections and promote cooperation between the Mediterranean Process of the Union and the Mediterranean Action Plan (UNEP/MAP). We want to take those contents that currently overlap and build them into active, effective synergies!

In this sense, the 14 th Meeting of the Contracting Parties to the Convention for the Protection of the Marine Environment and the Coastal Region of the Mediterranean and its Protocols is a meeting of exceptional importance. The "ambassadors of the sea" – people who have taken on this responsible task – will come together in Portorož. On behalf of the sea, we will call for a change to consumerist attitudes and for a raising of awareness.

The best companion to Slovenia's presidency will be good action: action that contributes to the realisation of the strategy of sustainable development in the Adriatic ecoregion and in the Mediterranean.

I would like to welcome participants to the official website of the Meeting of Contracting Parties to the Convention. Here you will find all the information you need to plan your journey to and from Portorož, and for a pleasant stay and successful participation in the Meeting itself. For any additional information or explanations, please apply to the Meeting staff, who will be happy to provide you with prompt answers to your queries.

I look forward to seeing you at our meeting by the sea.

Janez Podobnik

Minister of the Environment and Spatial Planning of the Republic of Slovenia