The Mediterranean Interregional Commission is one of the twelve Committees of the United Cities and Local Governments. Within United Cities and Local Governments, the Interregional Mediterranean Commission is at the junction of three regional sections: Europe, Africa, and the Middle East/West Asia. The Mediterranean occupies a special place in UCLG due to the large number of direct members in the three regions North, South, and East of the Mediterranean and because of the many cooperation initiatives that connect local authorities and the common policies for regional development. Following the Med Urbs program, a “network culture” of trans-Mediterranean local authorities was created in the Mediterranean, reinforced by the Euro-Mediterranean partnership: Medcities, the network of Euromed cities (previously the Euromed group of Eurocities), the Standing Committee for the Euro Mediterranean Partnership of Local and Regional Authorities (COPPEM), the Europe-MENA Urban Network, Latin Arch, the Inter-Mediterranean Commission of the Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR), and the European network of local authorities for peace in the Middle East (COEPPO) are some of the networks that intersect with a variety of networks of civil society, universities and initiatives of the private sector. It appeared that the three regional sections of UCLG together could reinforce exchanges and encourage taking into consideration the specific interests of local Mediterranean authorities, whether on matters related to Euro-Mediterranean relations or on strategic issues like decentralization, urban development, or the environment, particularly access to and water management. Within the “Mediterranean” context, the Mediterranean Commission brings added value as vital support to a dynamic process that will make possible: - Providing visibility and legibility to the numerous initiatives of local authorities in the Mediterranean. - Creating the necessary conditions for the actors of these initiatives to meet in order to share know-how and experiences, to avoid scattered and compartmentalized actions, and by doing so, to optimize their impact in the field; encouraging particularly North-South and South-South dialogue and knowledge exchanges. - Gaining recognition of the importance of the local institutional sphere as designers, managers, and leaders of development policies that are the closest to the citizens, in a region where governance indicators show it is urgent to bring centers of power closer to the population. - Bridging the gap between elected representatives and local decision-makers in the Mediterranean who due to longstanding conflicts, economic difficulties and cultural stereotypes stifle the feeling of sharing a common Mediterranean or Euro-Mediterranean destiny. - Promoting