Key facts

• Full title: Preparing the Research & Innovation Core for Mission Ocean, Seas & Waters
• Programme: Horizon Europe, EU Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters
• Call topic: HORIZON-MISS-2021-OCEAN-01-01
• Type of action: Coordination and Support Action
• Duration: 36 months, 1 June 2022 to 31 May 2025
• EU contribution: €4,997,690
• Coordinator: French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer), France
• Consortium: 17 partners from 8 countries
• EuroMarine role: support to project management and engagement of the scientific community
• Grant agreement: 101056957

Context of the call

PREP4BLUE was funded under the first call of the EU Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters (HORIZON-MISS-2021-OCEAN-01), on the preparation for the deployment of lighthouse demonstrators, solution scale-ups and cross-cutting citizen and stakeholder involvement. The Mission, a major contributor to the European Green Deal and the Sustainable Development Goals, aims to restore the health of our ocean and waters by 2030.

Objectives

• Establish networks of stakeholders and coordinate synergies with other Mission projects and initiatives.
• Develop a common, visionary narrative for the Mission and communicate it to citizens and stakeholders.
• Empower citizens to engage with the Mission.
• Organise knowledge management and transfer for the Mission's research and innovation core.
• Support an enabling environment for the Mission, including sustainable business and governance models, investment and funding synergies.
• Engage stakeholders through dedicated strategies, connectivity and co-creation in the sea and river basins.

Consortium

PREP4BLUE brought together research institutes, universities, regional networks, clusters and science centres from eight countries. EuroMarine member organisations are marked with an asterisk (*).

• French Research Institute for Exploitation of the Sea (Ifremer), France, coordinator *
• ERINN Innovation, Ireland *
• Joint Programming Initiative Healthy and Productive Seas and Oceans (JPI Oceans), Belgium
• German Marine Research Consortium (KDM), Germany
• Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ), Belgium *
• De Blauwe Cluster, Belgium
• Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft, Germany
• Conference of Peripheral Maritime Regions (CPMR), France
• University of Southern Denmark (SDU), Denmark *
• Centro Tecnológico del Mar (CETMAR), Spain
• Nordland Research Institute (Nordlandsforskning), Norway *
• Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Spain *
• University College Cork, Ireland
• EuroMarine Association, France
• National Research Council of Italy (CNR), Italy *
• s.Pro sustainable-projects, Germany
• Galway Atlantaquaria, Ireland

EuroMarine's contribution

The EuroMarine Secretariat supported Ifremer, together with ERINN, in the management and coordination of the project, and mobilised the marine science community in the Mission. It contributed to stakeholder engagement and knowledge transfer activities, including the facilitation of activities in the lighthouse areas, building on its experience of engaging scientists in co-creation. This experience now informs EuroMarine's role in BlueMissionDBS2030.

Relevance for EuroMarine members

Through PREP4BLUE, EuroMarine members were invited to take part in the Mission's stakeholder assemblies and consultations, strengthening the voice of marine science in the implementation of the Mission.

More information: PREP4BLUE on CORDIS

Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or of the granting authority, the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency (CINEA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. Grant agreement: 101056957.