We are pleased to announce the incorporation of the Botanical Garden of the University of Almeria (UAL) to our cooperation platform ‘Med-O-Med, Cultural Landscapes of the Mediterranean and Middle East’. This incorporation positions the Almerian garden in an international network that unites botanic gardens, scientific centres and heritage sites from more than 20 countries, while becoming part of a scientific and educational community committed to sustainability, ethnobotany and knowledge exchange.
What is the Med-O-Med network
Created in 2009 by FUNCI, Med-O-Med Cultural Landscapes of the Mediterranean and the Middle East focuses on the concept of cultural landscape, i.e. the historical interaction between peoples and their natural and cultural environment. In this framework, botanical gardens not only preserve biodiversity, but also memory, agricultural practices, traditional knowledge and aesthetic values.
The UAL garden will share space with botanical gardens of reference in the Arab and Mediterranean world.
La red está integrada por instituciones de países como Marruecos, Túnez, Egipto, Turquía, Líbano, Jordania y España, entre otros, y promueve proyectos conjuntos de investigación, conservación, educación ambiental y desarrollo sostenible.
The network is made up of institutions from countries such as Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Turkey, Lebanon, Jordan and Spain, among others, and promotes joint research, conservation, environmental education and sustainable development projects.
The Botanical Garden of the University of Almeria: a mosaic of biodiversity on the campus
The Botanical Garden of the University of Almeria (UAL) is today a network of thematic gardens designed for the study, conservation and dissemination of flora, with special attention to species typical of arid and semi-arid ecosystems. Far from being a single, enclosed space, this garden extends throughout the university campus, integrating with the architecture and landscape, and transforming previously ornamental areas into authentic, scientifically structured living collections.
Since 2016, the Scientific Collections Centre of the University of Almeria (CECOUAL) has been leading this process of ecological transition, redesigning the university green spaces under botanical, ecological and pedagogical criteria. The result is a contemporary botanical garden, adapted to the climatic conditions of the southeast Iberian Peninsula and oriented to environmental education, research and dissemination of the Mediterranean plant heritage.
A network of themed gardens
Among its most outstanding spaces are the Salt Garden (with halophilic flora), the Gypsum Garden (focused on gypsophilic species), the Volcanic Geogarden (combining geology and botany of Cabo de Gata) and La Botica (with Andalusian medicinal plants). Also included are original proposals such as the Mathematicians’ Garden, which combines science, art and nature.
These gardens not only enrich the campus landscape, but also offer a model of sustainable gardening adapted to the Mediterranean climate and a living resource for teaching, dissemination and conservation of biodiversity.
A look into the future
The entry of the UAL Botanical Garden into Med-O-Med is another step towards a university open to the world, committed to its territory and sensitive to global environmental challenges. This recognition reinforces the work of those who, from the scientific and technical fields, work to conserve the Mediterranean’s plant wealth and to transmit its value to future generations.
Cover image: Water Gardens. Circular pond at the entrance to the UAL © UAL.
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