
Interreg Euro-MED - BLUE ECOSYSTEM
The BLUE ECOSYSTEM project engages industry, government, civil society, academia, and the environment—represented by conservation associations and NGOs—through a transformative and territorial co-creation approach to enhance innovation and research capacities.
Each participating region identifies the challenges of the blue economy in its territory (aligned with its RIS3), launches a call for transformative solutions to address them, and sets a regional accelerator laboratory (the so-called TRAIN labs) to support their adoption and scaling up.
By the end of the project, a transnational open innovation program (BLUE ECOMATCH) is organized to share experiences and lessons learned, which are compiled into a ‘blue book’ for capitalization.

OPEN CALLS - Transformative solutions
The eight regions have already identified their key challenges and launched a call for innovative solutions!
🚀 APPLY NOW if you believe your idea can help transform the blue economy!
Find all the details below by region 😊
- The challenges...
- Alentejo
- Albania
- Attica
- Balearic Islands
- Cyprus
- Emilia-Romagna
- Occitane & Région Sud
- Zadar County
Based on the co-creation methodology, several workshops were organized in each region with the aim of:
- Identify territorial challenges and priority actions, using the Blue Transformative Challenges and Priorities Matrix (developed by the project), and align them with Smart Specialization Strategies (S3)
- Identify mission-oriented intervention areas to adapt and scale innovation within the Blue Economy, taking into consideration territorial capacities, gaps, and enabling conditions.
The active engagement of diverse stakeholders—including industry leaders, policymakers, service providers, regulatory bodies, researchers, and civil society—ensured that regional strengths and socio-economic contexts were fully integrated into the Transformative Portfolio of Missions, supporting the development of tailored, impactful, and regionally relevant solutions for the Mediterranean Blue Economy.
Find more information HERE.
Alentejo has identified the following challenges:
- Cultural and creative industry: Promoting eco-sustainable tourism by shifting from mass tourism to community-based coastal experiences, investing in digital transformation, sustainable mobility, and the preservation of maritime culture, with a focus on natural reserves like Parque Natural do Sudoeste Alentejano e Costa Vicentina.
- Bioeconomy – Agrofood: Aiming to protect biodiversity and enhance food security through sustainable aquaculture practices, the use of alternative proteins, biodegradable gear, and valorization of marine by-products, while addressing challenges such as IUU fishing and the environmental footprint of fisheries.
- Transport and logistics: Decarbonization through electrification of ports, green ship design, smart logistics, and alternative fuels, positioning the Port of Sines as a key blue innovation hub for digital and green transition.
- Energy: Advancing towards marine renewables—offshore wind, solar, wave energy, and green hydrogen—supported by infrastructure investments and aligned with national carbon neutrality goals
Find all the details about the innovative solutions they are looking for and how to apply HERE! 🚀
DEADLINE:
Albania has identified the following challenges:
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Bioeconomy & Agrofood: Enhancing sustainable fishing and aquaculture practices, addressing overfishing and climate-related marine habitat degradation through AI-driven fisheries monitoring systems, smart aquaculture technologies, and community-driven conservation initiatives.
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Energy: Focusing on marine-based energy production, particularly offshore wind and wave energy, with challenges related to high investment costs and infrastructure gaps. The country plans to develop advanced turbines, encourage public awareness, and establish policy incentives to drive investment in marine renewable energy.
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Cultural & Creative Industries: Promoting sustainable tourism models and mitigate over-tourism’s environmental impact by integrating smart visitor management, strengthening community engagement, and implementing governance reforms for eco-tourism.
Find all the details about the innovative solutions they are looking for and how to apply HERE! 🚀
DEADLINE:
Attica has identified the following challenges:
- Bioeconomy-Agrofood: Enhancing biodiversity and carbon neutrality in aquaculture, promoting sustainable marine food systems, and fostering Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) to manage nutrient overload.
- Environment: Restoring marine biodiversity and tackle pollution by deploying advanced waste collection technologies and engaging communities in habitat restoration. ICT-Digital Transformation focuses on AI-based monitoring and IoT systems to enhance marine resource management, addressing data-sharing limitations.
- Digital transformation: Focusing on AI-based monitoring and IoT systems to enhance marine resource management, addressing data-sharing limitations.
- Public health: Targeting marine biotechnology for pharmaceuticals and nutraceuticals, R&D and regulatory improvements.
- Energy: Centered on reducing emissions, enhancing efficiency, and integrating marine renewable energy through wave and wind energy development and cold ironing
- Social innovation: Regulatory alignment, investment in R&D, and fostering public-private collaboration
Find all the details about the innovative solutions they are looking for and how to apply HERE! 🚀
DEADLINE:
Balearic Islands has identified the following challenges:
- Bioeconomy-Agrofood: Prioritizing biodiversity conservation, carbon neutrality, and the sustainable management of fisheries through Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), low-impact fishing practices, and economic incentives such as promoting high-quality local seafood.
- Energy sector: Focusing on achieving carbon neutrality by expanding offshore wind and solar farms, developing green fuels like hydrogen and wave energy, and fostering stakeholder collaboration to streamline implementation.
- Cultural & creative industries: Seeking to balance economic growth and conservation by promoting eco-friendly tourism, digital transformation in hospitality, and community-based sustainability initiatives
Find all the details about the innovative solutions they are looking for and how to apply HERE! 🚀
DEADLINE:
Cyprus has identified the following challenges:
- Transports & logistics: Aiming to achieve carbon-neutral shipping and port operations through alternative fuels, smart logistics, and digitalization, while addressing challenges in infrastructure and regulatory frameworks.
- Bioeconomy-Agrofood: Targeting sustainable aquaculture and fisheries, with a focus on biodegradable gear, waste valorization, and ecosystem restoration.
- Energy: Expanding marine renewable energy and desalination technologies, addressing high investment costs and coordination challenges through pilot projects and EU funding opportunities.
- Cultural & creative industries: Promoting eco-tourism, sustainable visitor management, and digital transformation in hospitality, overcoming infrastructure gaps and low public awareness.
- Public health: Integrating marine-derived pharmaceuticals and biotechnologies into the circular economy, despite challenges in funding and regulatory alignment
- Social innovation: Including digitalization, stakeholder collaboration, targeted financing, and regulatory reforms, positioning Cyprus as a leader in sustainable blue economy innovation.
Find all the details about the innovative solutions they are looking for and how to apply HERE! 🚀
DEADLINE:
Emilia-Romagna has identified the following challenges:
- Bioeconomy-Agrofood: Aiming to protect biodiversity and promote circular economy practices by enhancing sustainable aquaculture, fostering regenerative practices, and creating Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Challenges include the lack of standardized guidelines and the need for improved utilization of local resources. Key actions involve supporting marine biotechnologies, collaboration between fishermen and research institutions, and regulatory improvements.
- Energy & shipbuilding: Seeking to the marine renewable energy transition, encourages offshore wind and solar energy adoption, and promotes sustainable shipbuilding. High implementation costs and fragmented supply chains remain challenges. Italy plans to integrate floating photovoltaics, develop supply chains for marine energy infrastructure, and leverage decommissioned offshore platforms for renewable energy projects
- Cultural & creative industries: Prioritizing eco-tourism and marine conservation, aiming to enhance stakeholder collaboration, digital transformation, and risk management in coastal areas. Key interventions include digital platforms for monitoring, community-based eco-tourism models, and financial incentives for sustainable tourism projects.
Find all the details about the innovative solutions they are looking for and how to apply HERE! 🚀
DEADLINE:
Occitanie-Région Sud has identified the following challenges:
- Transports & logistics: It prioritizes carbon neutrality, pollution reduction, and digital transformation in maritime activities. The strategy seeks to minimize the environmental impact of ports and shipping, improve energy efficiency, and support CO₂ sequestration and transport. Challenges include the slow adoption of low-carbon technologies, insufficient digital monitoring tools, and resistance to upgrading port infrastructure for sustainable solutions.
Find all the details about the innovative solutions they are looking for and how to apply HERE! 🚀
DEADLINE:
Zadar County has identified the following challenges:
- Bioeconomy-Agrofood: Seeking to enhance sustainable aquaculture, reduce waste, and develop biodegradable gear to minimize environmental impact, addressing Illegal, Unreported, and Unregulated (IUU) fishing through regulatory improvements and R&D investment
- Transport & logistics: Focusing on decarbonizing ports and shipping through alternative fuels, smart logistics, and electrified port infrastructure, with the goal of positioning Croatia as a leader in low-emission maritime transport.
- Digital transformation: Prioritizing AI and IoT applications for real-time marine monitoring, data-sharing frameworks, and citizen science engagement.
- Environment: Centered on marine ecosystem restoration, habitat protection, and pollution prevention, leveraging drones and AI technologies for marine monitoring.
- Social innovation: Promoting eco-tourism, enhance digital tourism platforms, and encourage community-driven conservation efforts, incorporating green certifications and environmental stewardship models.
Find all the details about the innovative solutions they are looking for and how to apply HERE! 🚀
DEADLINE:
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