Within the scope of the H2020 BRIDGE-BS project, the second of the three rounds of Living Labs started to take place at the pilot sites (PS) of the BRIDGE-BS.

The second round aims to;

• Validate the key pressures and risk as part of the overall PS system
• Agree on the general problem statement translating the challenge the Living Lab is tackled
• Co-design a vision for the PS across sectors and stakeholder groups as a narrative describing the desired state of the PS in 2050 where the current challenge will be resolved (it’s about envisaging a sustainable future for each region).

In this context, Living Labs has been started with Romania, Bulgaria and Istanbul events. There are two more to run in Batumi (07 April) and Sinop (TBC). All Living Labs will be conducted in connection with Pilot Sites (PSs). While the 1st round of Living Labs aimed to identify the main ecosystem services, stressors and risks, needs & challenges in the region as well as opportunities to develop the blue economy, in the 2nd round, participants have come together to form a consensus on the general problem statement translating the challenge the Living Lab is tackled and to co-design a vision for the PS across sectors and stakeholder groups as a narrative describing the desired state of the PS in 2050 the future of the Black Sea.

The first event of the 2nd round successfully held on Romanian coastal area, organized by NIMRD “Grigore Antipa” and GeoEcoMar on 28 February in Constanta. 34 representatives of 22 institutions from all sectors, respectively politics/administrative, economy/business, civil society/NGO, and education/research had fruitful discussions regarding their vision on a healthy, resilient, productive, and sustainable Black Sea by 2050.

The LL in Istanbul was held jointly with the EU Green Deal H2020 ARSINOE project, which aims to create a roadmap by determining the priorities and needs for increasing the capacity of adaptation and resilience to climate change in sectors. Stay tuned for the following LLs.