All posts by GOB Menorca

Dangerous land

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The theory of no man’s land began as a somewhat rudimentary slogan, but it soon took root because of the usefulness it could offer at particular moments. Circumstances condition many things. When more developed societies carried out the occupation of other territories, it was necessary to dress it up with justification.

The strategy was to argue that no one was using that land. Without ploughing or sowing, it seemed abandoned. It was not difficult to spread the idea of lands that held no interest for those who had arrived previously. A line of reasoning that was very successful, to the misfortune of those who were already living there.

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The territorial corrupt practices of Menorca in carnival version

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Many people took part last Sunday in the carnival troupe organised within the framework of the Via Menorca campaign.

An initial group, dressed in suits and ties, carrying briefcases and documents, offered favourable reports and licences while €500 notes were exchanged. There was also a spectacular swimming pool (or perhaps it was a cistern?). A large roundabout related to Talayotic Menorca was also present, as well as several pages of the Island Territorial Plan.

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19 February, the housing issue to be debated at Ateneu de Maó

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The debate series «Viure dins del dònut» [«Living within the doughnut»] will approach the housing issue this Thursday, 19 February, with the aim of analysing the structural causes of the current situation and reflecting on possible future pathways.

The session, which will consider the phenomenon from different perspectives, will focus on the role of public policies in Menorca, the recent evolution of the real estate market and the challenges posed by a context of growing scarcity.

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A Step Forward for the Menorca Agroecological Alliance: Collaborative project workshop

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The Alliance for Agroecology in Menorca is organising a Project Definition Workshop next Thursday, 19 February, at CentreBit Menorca (Av. des Camp Verd, 4, in Alaior), with the aim of opening up the participatory process launched a year ago and bringing new people and organisations into the transformation of Menorca’s agricultural sector towards a more sustainable, fair and territory-rooted model.

After a first year of work driven by a small core group, the Alliance wants to take a step forward and broaden the project’s social base. Promoting the agroecological transition — which links agricultural production and nature conservation — is a collective challenge that requires everyone’s involvement.

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Monitoring tropospheric ozone in Maó

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Ozone is a gas that has beneficial effects in the upper layers of the atmosphere, where it filters ultraviolet radiation. However, it becomes harmful when present near the Earth’s surface — in the troposphere.

Tropospheric ozone is a complex pollutant with no single direct human source. Instead, it forms through chemical reactions involving so-called precursor pollutants emitted by transport, thermal power plants, certain industrial activities and intensive livestock farming.

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GOB highlights the need for a Balearic Biosecurity Law at inter-island meeting

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Over the weekend of 31 January–1 February, GEN-GOB of Ibiza hosted the meeting of the inter-Island Board of GOB, the coordination body of the four island sections.

Participants in the meeting, representing the GOB sections from each island, agreed on the need to provide the Autonomous Community with a Biosecurity Law. This is an urgent matter, as the islands are currently unprotected against the entry of invasive species due to the absence of their own regulations. In addition, existing state, European and international regulations are poorly applied and are far from being a priority in the management of ports and airports. At the same time, biosecurity problems are worsening at an alarming rate. The most extreme case is Ibiza, where invasive snakes are wiping out the population of the native lizard.

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Roofless progress

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The Roman Empire had one of its main ports at the mouth of the Tiber River. Intense trade and the movement of people generated an important settlement near the capital. But everything went into decline when rainfall began to bring in large quantities of sediment.

It had always rained. But the enormous deforestation carried out in nearby forests to extract firewood resulted in unprecedented erosion. The port filled with earth and ships could no longer operate. Ignoring limits ended up sinking a prosperous economy.

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From soil to seed – 2nd Session of the 2026 Agriculture and Environment Seminar

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The final session of the 2026 Agriculture and Environment Seminar, to be held in the audience hall of the Claustre del Carme on 7 February in Maó, will focus on the role of knowledge — scientific, traditional and applied — as a driver of transformation in the agricultural model. The presentations will address, from complementary perspectives, how recent advances in the study and management of soil, on the one hand, and, on the other, the recovery of wild edible plants and traditional varieties, can contribute to strengthening biodiversity, food sovereignty and the economic viability of the primary sector.

Two presentations that will outline a horizon in which research, farming and territory converge to move towards a more sustainable, resilient and locally rooted agriculture through concrete and contextualised experiences and data.

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The Agenda Game

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Despite all the countless declarations of love for the land, there are still initiatives in Menorca’s rural areas that consistently seek maximum real estate returns, at the risk of significantly altering the island’s territorial reality.

A territory that, we were told, had captivated developers precisely because it was well-preserved. Yet influential figures keep pushing limits, even when projects would be profitable with fewer interventions, or when investors already have ample financial capacity.

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