As the fourth article in our Blue regions in action series, we travel this week to Cyprus, where tackling water scarcity has become a strategic priority for the regional blue economy.
STEP 1: Identification of regional challenges
The co-creation workshop was held on 3 December 2024, bringing together local stakeholders to identify Cyprus’s most pressing blue economy challenge: Water scarcity & Water management.
STEP 2: CALL FOR INNOVATIVE SOLUTIONS
A total of 7 solutions were received during the Call for Solutions in Cyprus, showing strong engagement from regional actors. Of these 7, 2 were submitted by public authorities and 5 by enterprises and SMEs. From these submissions, 5 solutions were selected to enter the next phase of development.
STEP 3: ACCELERATING THE IDEAS THROUGH THE TRAIN LAB
The Cyprus TRAIN Lab “Tackling water scarcity: Utilising AI and digital technology for innovative solutions”, was held on 17–18 September 2025 at the European Institute of Management and Finance (EIMF), Nicosia.
Day 1: Ideation and Co-Creation
Facilitated by Christina Achilleos (Founder, InnoEUSphere), participants engaged in interactive exercises to ideate and co-create solutions addressing water scarcity. By the end of the day, three key solutions were developed:
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NAIADS: An open-access water data platform for education, research, and policy development.
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AquaQuest: An educational game for children and adults, promoting water literacy and conservation.
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Pigadi: A decentralized rainwater harvesting and wastewater treatment system for villages and rural areas.
Day 2: Applying AI and Digital Tools
Led by Paris Thomas (CEO, Talent Hacks), participants explored AI-powered tools such as Pitch.com, Beautiful.ai, Synthesia, Looka, Notebook LM, and Rapid Visual to enhance their solutions and design initial business models.
The workshop gathered 20 individuals representing all five groups of the quintuple helix: academia (The Cyprus Institute, University of Cyprus), industry (Caramondani Desalination Plants Ltd, Mind the Game, O.M. Offshore Monitoring Ltd), government (Water Development Department), NGOs & environment (Cyprus Ecological Movement, Global Water Partnership, Water Grooves).
The solutions developed demonstrate a mix of digital innovation, public engagement, and infrastructure development:
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NAIADS offers transparency and a shared knowledge database for water policy and research.
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AquaQuest aims to raise awareness and promote sustainable behavior through gamification.
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Pigadi strengthens local water resource availability while reducing pressure on national systems.
A follow-up survey highlighted areas for improvement, including the need for more time to familiarize participants with AI tools, additional contextual framing for brainstorming, and increased use of digital participation tools.
Solutions will still get support from Chrysalis LEAP and the most advanced ones will be selected to represent Cyprus at BLUE ECOMATCH Event (28-29 April 2026 in Marseille).
Stay tuned to BLUE ECOSYSTEM social media for real-time updates (LinkedIn or website).
For further information about the project, please contact jordi.juarez@crpm.org
