Previous editions

The 8th edition of CELEBRATE ISLANDS was also held virtually. This edition was entitled “Let’s take care of our islands” and honoured the islands of all the seas of the world and especially the men and women who take care of their territory. On the occasion of a video conference, several insular territories have shared remarkable initiatives which contribute to the vitality of the islands and the protection of their ecosystems.
This event was also marked by a video competition with four prizes of €3000 at stake. Organisations working on islands could submit a 120-second video on a micro-project they would like to carry out on their island. An international jury selected 3 prizes and the 4th prize was selected by the public.  To watch the 2021 application videos again, : click here.

The 8th edition of CELEBRATE ISLANDS was also held virtually. This edition was entitled “Let’s take care of our islands” and honoured the islands of all the seas of the world and especially the men and women who take care of their territory. On the occasion of a video conference, several insular territories have shared remarkable initiatives which contribute to the vitality of the islands and the protection of their ecosystems.
This event was also marked by a video competition with four prizes of €3000 at stake. Organisations working on islands could submit a 120-second video on a micro-project they would like to carry out on their island. An international jury selected 3 prizes and the 4th prize was selected by the public.  To watch the 2021 application videos again, click here.

For its 6th edition, CELEBRATE ISLANDS celebrated history and promoted the past of island territories with the aim of imagining an ideal sustainable management for the future. Divided into three temporal phases, this edition intended to honour  the past of islands by looking back on the evolution of  human activities on islands and promoting concrete management actions done in the present.
Finally, this edition organised a great competition for school children for the Islands of the Future. Schoolchildren from island territories were encouraged to imagine innovative and futuristic solutions for the sustainable management of small islands in the future.

This 5th edition was dedicated to the problem of water resources on islands, which is one of the major insular issues faced. Within the framework of this edition, the PIM Initiative organised a 2-month sailing trip in the Mediterranean with teenagers in social and professional reintegration visiting different small islands in the Mediterranean. In addition, SMILO organised an international technical workshop on the island of Tavolara in Sardinia addressing the issue of water management.

The 4th edition was dedicated to the theme of Sustainable Tourism. This event mobilised different island stakeholders by encouraging them to organise local initiatives addressing this theme: guided tours to discover the natural environment, cultural and historical heritage, sustainable tourism activities, conferences on the theme of sustainable tourism, awareness campaigns, waste collection campaigns.
The Conservatoire du littoral, the PIM Initiative and SMILO made available to the different stakeholders a collaborative exhibition on “Small islands, pioneers of sustainable development” with beautiful HD and professional photographs, captioned in multilingual, to talk about good island management practices. In addition, the organisers distributed an awareness tool in the form of a poster intended to be hanging on the tourist points to raise awareness of the good practices to adopt while visiting an island.

This 3rd edition brought together the different country partners around the theme of small islands as pioneers of sustainable development. On the occasion of this edition of CELEBRATE ISLANDS, the Conservatoire du littoral and its partners organised a travelling photographic exhibition highlighting the concrete actions carried out by more than 30 small islands around the world to meet the major challenges of tomorrow. It was presented simultaneously in France, Tunisia, Mozambique, Spain, Albania and Croatia.
In addition, the event promoted the Sustainable Small Islands Initiative, which aims to bring together and support the actors who work daily for the protection of islands and to promote their actions. The Initiative’s project to create a vast network for the exchange of experience and good practice, and to encourage and reward the efforts undertaken locally by its members, thanks in particular to the Small Sustainable Island Label, was presented.

The 2nd edition of CELEBRATE ISLANDS was in line with the theme of sustainable development put forward in 2015 by the Convention on Biological Diversity. On this occasion, the Conservatory and the PIM Initiative wrote a booklet dedicated to small islands around the different island issues linked to sustainable development: good waste management, promotion of renewable energies, water and sanitation, protection of flora and fauna, but also the enhancement of natural and cultural heritage or participatory governance. Throughout the week, island initiatives addressing these different sustainable development issues were shared.
Various awareness-raising operations were carried out on island territories, notably on Frioul with the installation of banners on the international issues of the islands installed at the Frioul Islands pier.

The 1st edition of CELEBRATE ISLANDS was launched by the Conservatoire du Littoral and the PIM Initiative in 2014 with the aim of raising awareness about the protection of island spaces in all seas and oceans. Coinciding with the World Day of Biodiversity, the event was dedicated to the theme of “Island Biodiversity”. This first edition proposed to the different island actors to mobilise on their islands by organising different events, free and open to all: reception of schoolchildren and awareness raising activities on environmental protection, workshops, public conferences, film festivals, exhibitions, scientific initiatives. The festivities ended with an international conference held at the Villa Méditerranée in Marseille, bringing together 250 artists, scientists, elected representatives, associations and companies from France, the Mediterranean and other countries.
This first edition also allowed the development of a communication tool with a booklet containing 22 good reasons to protect small islands.