European Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership launches 1st Joint Transnational Call

The European co-funded Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership (SBEP), developed under the Horizon Europe Framework Programme, launched on 13 February 2023 its first Joint Transnational Call (CTC), under the topic "The way forward: a thriving sustainable blue economy for a brighter future". The Call, organised in two phases, will have the first phase of submission of applications until 14 April 2023 (14:00 GMT). Approved pre-proposals will be invited to submit the full application in the second application submission phase by 13 September 2023 (14:00 GMT).

The SBEP intends to design, guide and support a just and inclusive transition to a regenerative, resilient and sustainable blue economy, aiming to drive the necessary transformation to a climate-neutral, sustainable and productive blue economy by 2030 while creating and supporting the conditions for a sustainable ocean by 2050.

One of the main objectives of this Partnership is the launch of CTCs, co-financed by the European Union, and addressing priority areas under the SBEP's Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA).

The first SBEP CTC mobilises national and regional financial resources through the participation of ministries and funding agencies from 23 countries responsible for funding research and innovation actions in the blue economy. FCT, the Regional Fund for Science and Technology (FRCT, Azores) and the Regional Coordination and Development Commission of the Centre (CCDR-Centre) are the national organisations participating in the first edition of Call, aimed at supporting transnational research and innovation projects in one of the following five priority areas:

1. Planning and managing sea-uses at the regional level 
2. Development of offshore marine multi-use infrastructures to support the blue economy 
3. Climate neutral, environmentally sustainable, and resource-efficient blue food and feed 
4. Green transition of Blue Food production
5. Ocean Digital Twin (ODT) test use cases at EU sea-basins and the Atlantic Ocean

Projects should contribute to impact the transformation of the blue economy towards a more resilient future and the goal of carbon neutrality, and should be developed on a pan-European level and in the different European sea basins - the Mediterranean Sea, the Black Sea, the Baltic Sea, the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean - as well as establish close cross-sectoral cooperation between science, innovation and economic sectors.

See Call for more information.