Friends of the Earth Malta has joined over 25 organisations in the “Manoel Island: A Place for Us” campaign, calling for Manoel Island to be transformed into a car-free public park, fully accessible to the public and protected from further over-construction.

With the MIDI concession currently under renegotiation, there is a real chance to reimagine Manoel Island as a green, cultural, and recreational haven in the heart of the harbour. This is a unique opportunity to restore natural spaces for public benefit in one of Malta’s most urbanised regions.

This campaign builds on Friends of the Earth Malta’s Public Domain Initiative, which in 2017 gathered over 5,500 signatures across Malta and Gozo, urging MPs to protect 24 sites—including Manoel Island—under the Public Domain Act. That initiative showed widespread public support for preserving spaces that belong to everyone, not just a few.

Protecting Manoel Island is part of FoE Malta’s larger vision of greener, more liveable urban areas. Through our work on urban gardening, nature therapy, and community green spaces, we promote accessible nature in our daily environments—improving mental health, community ties, and climate resilience.

We now urge everyone who believes in a greener, more just Malta to take action.

Sign the official parliamentary petition to turn Manoel Island into a wooded green space in the urban core!

Let’s protect this rare urban green space—for nature, for the people, and for future generations.

Learn more about the Manoel Island Campaign

Explore our work on urban greening!