Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou is hosting this week in Athens a meeting of prime ministers, ministers and policymakers from across the Mediterranean, aiming to forge joint action against the growing risks to the region posed by climate change.

On Oct. 22, Papandreou, his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan, Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayad and Premier Lawrence Gonzi of Malta, along with other representatives of Mediterranean countries, will sign a political declaration and officially launch the Mediterranean Climate Change Initiative ( MCCI).

This initiative, proposed by Papandreou, aims to strengthen environmental collaboration, and promote and facilitate investment in low-carbon development projects in the region.

The Mediterranean has been identified by the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) as being especially vulnerable to the impacts of climate change. Many of these impacts, such as increased risk of drought, longer fire season, and reduction in crop productivity, are common across the region, yet few Mediterranean countries have robust adaptation plans.

Through the MCCI, regional leaders hope that a unified Mediterranean voice can advance climate change discussions on a global level, protect the fragile Mediterranean ecosystem, and promote a "green economic boost" through the sharing of best practices in low-carbon development.

"This initiative is unprecedented in its ambition," said Papandreou on Monday ahead of the event. "Mediterranean leaders have shown the collective will and capacity to take a lead in the global climate change debate. It is time we come together with a common voice to address our common challenge."

On the economic benefits from the initiative, Papandreou noted: "Green development will provide tremendous growth opportunities and has the potential to create much-needed jobs and new areas of competitive advantage for our region."

European Investment Bank President Philippe Maystadt and Columbia University Professor and Director of the Earth Institute Jeffrey Sachs will also attend the event, which is organized by the Greek Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Environment, Energy, and Climate Change.

The leaders' forum will be followed on Oct. 23 by the first Mediterranean Green Development Investors Forum (Med GDIF), organized by the European Investment Bank and the Institute for Climate and Energy Security (i4cense) and held under the auspices of the Office of the Greek Prime Minister. Papandreou will also address this event.

The subject of the Med GDIF forum is "Financing profitable green initiatives and investments across the Mediterranean."