Thursday, May 16, Terre d’Estuaire—an immersive venue located at the port of Cordemais—provided a symbolic and inspiring setting for the 3rd edition of the Estuary Encounters, an annual event organized by the Nantes Saint-Nazaire Metropolitan Hub and the PETR of Pays de Retz, as part of the TRAJECTOIRE 2050 program.
Better understanding estuaries to build together
Estuaries are strategic areas where ecological, economic, and social challenges intersect. They also offer valuable opportunities for cooperation among local stakeholders.
This year’s edition highlighted the Loire and Seine estuaries—two territories facing similar challenges.
One of the key moments of the event was the visit of Édouard Philippe, Mayor of Le Havre and President of the Seine Estuary Metropolitan Hub.
Among the participants:
Johanna Rolland, Mayor of Nantes
David Samzun, Mayor of Saint-Nazaire
Dorothée Pacaud, Mayor of Saint-Brévin
Bruno Marmiroli, Director of the Loire Valley UNESCO World Heritage Mission
Alongside them, urban planners, researchers, architects, and local stakeholders enriched the discussions with a shared ambition: to make estuaries pilot spaces for innovation, transition, and solidarity.
One of the highlights of the day was the official announcement of the partnership between Nantes, Saint-Nazaire, and the Ukrainian city of Kherson, in the presence of Vadym Omelchenko, Ambassador of Ukraine to France, and Vitalii Bielobrov, Deputy Mayor of Kherson.
Also located on an estuary—that of the Dnipro River near the Black Sea—Kherson shares many challenges and priorities with the French estuaries: a strategic geographical position, strong port activity, and ecological transition.
Deeply affected by Russia’s war of aggression, the city of Kherson stands today as a powerful symbol of the need for international solidarity and dialogue between territories, to collectively imagine and build concrete solutions.
