EXPER Regional Event Highlights Blue Economy Initiatives in the Atlantic

The EXPER Project successfully convened a two-day regional event on February 18-19, 2025, at the TERINOV Science Park in Terceira Island, Azores. This event aimed to bridge the gap between society, public entities, academia, and businesses, focusing on Blue and Green Research and Innovation (R&I) priorities. A notable highlight of the event was the presentation by Natalia Ospina-Alvarez from the AIR Centre, who delivered a pitch on the Blue Economy in the Atlantic area. Her discourse emphasised the strategic importance of the Atlantic region in fostering sustainable economic growth through marine and maritime sectors,  underscoring the necessity for collaborative efforts among regional stakeholders to harness ocean resources responsibly, to enhance research excellence and innovation capacity in EU Outermost Regions. The event also featured sessions on EU funding opportunities, presentations by research units and spin-offs from the University of the Azores, and matchmaking moments designed to facilitate networking and collaboration among key stakeholders. These activities collectively aimed to promote capacity building and the proactive engagement of regional actors in the R&I process, particularly within the Blue and Green economies. The AIR Centre is one of the Contact Nodes for the Atlantic Ocean at the Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership (SBEP), and during her presentation Dr. Ospina-Alvarez made the preannouncement of the next call of the SBEP, First Transnational Access Call to Research Infrastructures, which will be launch at the end of February. For more information about the SBEP and its initiatives, please visit the official website.