- The project presented its progress in sampling campaigns in the Irish Sea and the northern Adriatic Sea.
- The event was aligned with the European Maritime Day In My Country, the European Commission’s initiative to raise awareness of ocean protection.
09/10/2024, Brussels. Finnova Foundation organized last Tuesday, October 1st the webinar “ONE-BLUE: DISCUSSING CHALLENGES IN THE OCEAN PROTECTION”, in which the project partners presented the latest developments. For this occasion, we also counted on the presence of European projects. Held in the framework of the European Commission’s initiative “European Maritime Day in my country” (EMD 2024), the event served to explain to the public the latest project progress in the Irish Sea and Northern Adriatic Sea sampling campaigns. In case you wish to watch the webinar again, you can access it through this link.
The webinar was moderated by Jon Larrachea, communication officer of ONE-BLUE and the Finnova Foundation, partner of the project. The event was kicked off by Anna Popova, Head of International Relations of the Directorate General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries of the European Commission, presenting the recent efforts of the European Union in the conservation of the oceans. She also explained what the EU’s next objectives are in terms of ocean legislation, including compliance with the BBNJ Agreement.
Next, David Alcaide Benavides and María García Torné, from the Institute of Environmental Diagnosis and Water Studies (IDAEA-CSIC), presented the latest updates on the Irish Sea sampling campaign. Conducted in June, this campaign was spread over 10 sampling points along the Irish coast, improving the understanding of the concentrations, profiles, fate, behaviour and effects of emerging pollutants in these waters. The research will form part of a larger study to improve the current understanding of these contaminants in the Atlantic Ocean, one of the three ONE-BLUE case studies.
Next, Cinzia Centelleghe, researcher from the University of Padua, and Sara Valsecchi, researcher from the Italian National Research Center, spoke about the sampling campaign in the North Adriatic. Both explained the highlights of the marine data collection and analysis, focusing on the collection of sediment and seawater samples at various depths, and their plans to include biota samples in the research. The sampling campaign began on September 2-3, 2024, and will be completed with two additional campaigns planned for mid-October and late October 2024. They also highlighted that the sampling protocol follows the same methodology used in the Irish campaign, ensuring consistency between the two surveys.
The webinar featured a panel on environmental communication with Nathan Canas, Energy and Environment reporter at Euractiv, and Lise Helset Eide, communication advisor and web editor at Naturvernforbundet. Eide highlighted some challenges in the Nordic country, where climate issues have lost prominence in the media due to the pandemic and economic issues. Canas also agreed on this point and added that it is important to take information from scientific publications and groups to have reliable information on climate change and avoid fake news. Both emphasized the importance of involving the public: Eide focused on collaboration with scientists and the organization of public events, and Canas advocated for more coverage of local climate impacts so that climate change is presented as a more relatable issue. Regarding the pessimistic narrative that often accompanies environmental news, both agreed on the importance of balancing alarmist climate change narratives with solutions.
The last panel included two organizations that have already organized events within the framework of EMD 2024. Anca-Maria Panait, event coordinator of NGO Mare Nostrum, presented their main lines of action, which have been working for more than 30 years in marine biodiversity conservation and education. Regarding EMD 2024, NGO Mare Nostrum has created several events since 2019, showing its commitment to this EU initiative, and Panait highlighted an event on marine litter monitoring and the Black Sea Run to raise awareness of coastal issues. Ines Boujmil, AquaBioTech Group project coordinator, also spoke about her organization’s sustainability efforts in projects such as Science in the City, Science in the Citadel, FishEUTrust Ideathon and beach cleanups. Boujmil also presented the upcoming Hackathon Art Contest, focused on fighting marine pollution as part of EMD 2024.
About ONE-BLUE
ONE-BLUE, a research initiative funded by the European Union’s Horizon Europe program. With a budget of more than €6,200,000, ONE-BLUE focuses on research into the impact of emerging pollutants and the effects of climate change on marine biodiversity, thus contributing to the understanding and preservation of our aquatic ecosystems.
About Horizon Europe
Horizon Europe is the EU’s new framework program for research and innovation (2021-2027), successor to Horizon 2020, with a budget of over €95 billion. Its objectives include combating climate change, aligning with the SDGs and boosting EU competitiveness. It seeks to achieve scientific, technological, economic and social impact, strengthening the scientific and technological bases and competitiveness of the Member States. The Commission believes that Europe’s future depends on its leadership in research and innovation, and Horizon Europe seeks to address global challenges such as health, aging, security, pollution and climate change.
About FINNOVA
FINNOVA is the Spanish-Belgian non-profit foundation based in Brussels and Spain, working for the promotion and development of innovation and entrepreneurship in the EU. FINNOVA’s experience in leading communication and dissemination activities of European projects is combined with a solid proven track record in business creation and entrepreneurship support programs, such as accelerators, incubators and events, as well as its commitment to training and employability of young people.