Speeches
Cultural Landscapes in Natura 2000 sites
10/10/2014
Commissioner Damanaki participated in the Conference «Cultural Landscapes in Natura 2000 sites», organised by the Cultural Foundation of the Piraeus Bank. The Commissioner spoke of the importance of such landscapes and of their protection and she reiterated that the new European Maritime and Fisheries Fund will for the first time support protection measures both for the natural and cultural heritage of Europe.
Read Commissioner Damanaki's speech below in Greek.
Speech at the Ministerial and CEO panel session of the Ocean Energy Europe annual Conference
01/10/2014
In parallel of the high-level meeting of the Ocean Energy Forum, Commissioner Damanaki addressed the panel session of the Ocean Energy Europe annual Conference 2014 in Paris. Read Commissioner Damanaki's keynote speech below.
Speech at the Scientific Council of the International Centre of Maritime Research and Tradition, Maria Tsakos Foundation
11/09/2014
Commissioner Damanaki visited the island of Chios and participated in the Scientific Council of the International Centre of Maritime Research and Tradition, Maria Tsakos Foundation on Thursday September 11th. Read below Commissioner's speech on the potential of the Blue Growth strategy and the achievements of the reform of the Common Fisheries Policy.
“How to fish less and earn more”: Smart investment in sustainable fisheries
10/07/2014
Commissioner Damanaki emphasised at a conference hosted in London by the Prince Charles Charity Trust on 10 July how the new Common Fisheries Policy helps drive the maritime economy in a sustainable way. Bringing fish stocks back to healthy levels alone will increase incomes for fishermen in the long term. The European Maritime and Fisheries Fund (EMFF) can help fishermen to buy more selective gears to better target the species they want to catch and to save time and fuel costs. But Commissioner Damanaki also stressed that EU funding is not enough: “We also need private investment and initiatives. We want to move away from traditional grants and subsidies towards new alternatives such as revolving funds, loans, guarantees or venture capital funds”. The Commissioner sees encouraging bottom-up projects evolve, such as local groups using EU funds to use fish or farmed algae for the pharmaceutical or cosmetic industry. "These solut
Global solutions to save the world's oceans (SPEECH)
30/06/2014
Read below Commissioner Damanaki's keynote address at the Conference "re-energising the oceans", that she co-hosted today 30 June in Brussels together with the Global Ocean Commission. The event is attended by high level political representatives who chair the Global Ocean Commission such as José María Figueres, ex President of Costa Rica as well as Trevor Manuel, South African Minister in the Presidency and Head of National Planning and David Miliband.
Follow live the joint Press conference at 12:30 here.
Closing remarks at DISPA biannual meeting: "Resilience as a challenge for the Public Sector: The Institutes' and Schools' Contribution"
06/06/2014
Commissioner Damanaki attended the bi-annual meeting of the Directors of Institutes & Schools of Public Administration of EU Member States in Athens. This year's session focused on "Resilience as a challenge for the Public Sector: The Institutes' and Schools' Contribution". Commissioner Damanaki delivered closing remarks on the European example. Read her fullspeech below.
European Maritime Security Strategy : Moving Forward
23/05/2014
Commissioner Damanaki addressed the Chiefs of European Navies (CHENS) today in Portsmouth where they are holding their annual meeting. Read her speech below.
The CHENS is an informal, independent and non-political forum which brings together the Chief of Navy of each European maritime nation that is either a member of NATO or the EU and has naval armed forces. This event has been the opportunity for Commissioner Damanaki to come back on the proposal that she jointly tabled with High Representative Ashton early March for a European Maritime Security Strategy. Commissioner also recalled that ensuring the security and safety of our seas and oceans is a prime objective for the EU and that this proposal is an important step towards the completion of this objective.
Fisheries management in the Mediterranean and the Black Sea: time to go to the next level
20/05/2014
Commissioner Maria Damanaki addressed today, May 20, the Annual Meeting of the General Fisheries Commission for the Mediterranean (GFCM), which is taking place in Rome.
The GFCM is a Regional Fisheries Management Organisation of the FAO, which is promoting the conservation of marine resources and the sustainable management of fisheries in the Mediterranean and Black Sea.
This year's session is of particular importance as it should conclude a new text of the Agreement establishing this organisation, and thus strengthen its scope and functions. The EU is fully supporting this reform process.
Read Commissioner Damanaki's intervention below.
Speech at the European Maritime Day 2014: Innovation and research in the maritime economy
19/05/2014
Commissioner Damanaki keynote speech delivered during the European Maritime Day organised in Bremen, Germany. Commissioner Damanaki underlined that pressures on marine ecosystems are likely to increase and added that alternative, innovative and sustainable solutions are urgently needed.
She further added that looking at the blue economy is therefore important and mentionned the new strategy adopted by the European Commission to help use ocean resources sustainably as well as drive growth and jobs in Europe.
Read below Commissioner Damanaki's speech.
Speech at the ESRT conference on "The Implementation of the European Maritime Security Strategy"
14/05/2014
Commissioner Damanaki delivered today a keynote address during the Conference organised by the European Security Round Table (ESRT), focusing on the path towards a comprehensive and effective EU Maritime Security Strategy".
Within ESRT, relevant actors from the EU and NATO discuss crucial topics as well as the European security and defence issues.
Read Commissioner Damanaki's keynote speech below.
