BRIDGE-BS aims to advance the Black Sea marine research and innovation to co-develop Blue Growth pathways under multi-stressors for the sustainable utilization of the ecosystem services. To do so it will develop an ecosystem-based management framework to enable policy uptake and foster citizen engagement. BRIDGE-BS will support the development of an informed, well connected, educated, and empowered Black Sea community, including scientists, institutions, policymakers, and the society at large. It will create a flow of knowledge between scientists, policymakers, and entrepreneurs, working side-by-side from the beginning of the project. This approach will develop trust and complementarity, one of the main goals of BRIDGE-BS, which is necessary to prepare for future marine environmental challenges and ensure blue economy potential in the best possible way.

A regional research project initiative aiming at developing a network of marine protected areas in Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, and Albania. A major aspect of our work was the involvement of local stakeholders in the regions of interest – local NGOs, fishermen, diving clubs, and individuals with a general interest in the marine environment. A series of training and educational events were conducted, and a citizen-science platform was created, allowing participants to submit relevant data from their observations of marine biodiversity and environmental problems. An online web-GIS map portal with relevant spatial information from the studied MPAs was created and made available to local stakeholders.

iSWIM is a system to enhance the management, monitoring, and forecasting of the bathing water quality in Mamaia bay, integrating numerical models with in-situ measured and remote sensing products. iSWIM provides high-resolution forecasts of marine weather conditions, including surface currents, wave, and wind data. Data is made available through dynamic maps, charts, and tables. A set of webcams allows the user to visualize the current conditions of a select number of beaches located in the area of Mamaia Bay. A dedicated section allows to run models for emergency response scenarios, including oil spills and search and rescue operations.

Training and Capacity Building, aims to increase the capacity building, which goes beyond the training of individuals, and extends to the transfer of technology as well as to assisting countries in developing capacities related to the objectives of the project. WP8 will address the need for both EU and non-EU states to adopt a common framework and regional approach with regards to (i) environmental policy development; (ii) common monitoring practices and (iii) use of common assessment tools. A summer schools open to young scientists was organized by NIMRD in Romania in 2013, addressing the needs of EU and non-EU countries to work on MSFD-related subjects, in order to transfer knowledge and allow sharing and dissemination of relevant expertise.

A regional research project initiative aiming at developing a network of marine protected areas in Bulgaria, Greece, Cyprus, and Albania. A major aspect of our work was the involvement of local stakeholders in the regions of interest – local NGOs, fishermen, diving clubs, and individuals with a general interest in the marine environment. A series of training and educational events were conducted, and a citizen-science platform was created, allowing participants to submit relevant data from their observations of marine biodiversity and environmental problems. An online web-GIS map portal with relevant spatial information from the studied MPAs was created and made available to local stakeholders.

The 1st WECANet Training Course on Wave Energy was planned for five days, with six hours of training per day. The Training Course was specifically designed for those relatively new to wave energy and covered the following topics.

The overall objective of the project is to help improve protection of the Black Sea environment. This objective will be pursued through further technical assistance focused on establishing modern systems and facilities for environmental monitoring (in Georgia and Ukraine), capacity building, assessment of environmental status in line with EU MSFD/WFD and public awareness raising on the Black Sea environmental issues. The key involved actors are the relevant national authorities, as well as research / scientific and educational institutions involved in the Black Sea monitoring.

The key focus is to gather all necessary information, raise awareness of the relevant actors and provide them with practical tools in order to create active, cooperating communities in the fight against the plastic waste contamination and contribute to the work of water authorities to improve water quality by providing input for the upcoming revision of DRBMP.

Clean Christmas is a campaign to clean the beaches on Bulgaria’s Black Sea coast. It takes place every year between 18 December and 28 December. The idea was initiated by LessPlastic Bulgaria. The campaign is very popular and all participants are dressed up as Father Christmas.

The Black Sea React! Project aims to contribute to the regional dialogue on mitigating and effectively tackling marine pollution and marine litter, while at the same time seeking innovative solutions to salient problems.

Marine Sciences Program accepts 20 students aged between 10-14 and is continued for 3 weeks. As a curiosity name “What is in the middle of the Sea?” was proposed. Subjects of the program contain marine geology, physical, chemical, and biological oceanography, and marine ecosystem.

An initiative and a campaign focusing on increasing the awareness of the general public on the plastic pollution in the oceans, and in the Black Sea in particular. The main focus of the campaign was a multi-day wind surfing event along the whole Black Sea coast, which was combined with a survey of the pollution of marine waters with floating marine litter, and the filming of a documentary . The documentary provided details on the plastic pollution problem and possible solutions to it. It was then screened across the country at various events combined with lectures by scientists participating in the event.

The main objective of the RedMarLitter – Innovative Techniques and Methods for Reducing the Marine Litter in the Black Sea Coastal Areas project is to analyze the waste load of the Black Sea basin in specific representative areas, tracking the main polluting flows and carrying out waste cleaning through the developed measures in a specific demonstration pilot site through innovative methods

Black Sea Watch project is a joint initiative of Green Balkans NGO, Bulgaria, and TUDAV, Turkey aiming/s to raise public awareness of the biodiversity of the Black Sea a fragile ecosystem facing many threats. The developed tools mobile app for smartphones and website intends to raise knowledge about the flora and fauna inhabiting the Black Sea and to promote the involvement of the public in citizen science in the region. The collection of data and its submission by users will contribute to studies on the occurrence and distribution of different species in the Black Sea.

As part of the Horizon 2020 program, which is the European Commission’s tool to support research-development-innovation projects, “European Researchers’ Night” European Science and Entertainment Day” is celebrated all over Europe on the last Friday of September every year. For example, it was held in 2017 with the participation of more than 21,000 researchers from more than one million citizens in more than 340 cities from more than 25 countries across Europe. With the theme “Science Meets Art”, this year’s event consisted of some branches of art. These are (1) Painting, (2) Music and Dance, (3) Photography and Cinema, (4) Sculpture, and (5) Architecture. Our basic approach is to reveal how science and art inspire and/or feed each other. Here in this series of events; marine science and the Black Sea are represented in different activities. As making origami of marine creatures, introducing the public to the artistic and relaxing aspect of the Black Sea dolphins’ sound, and also performing an exhibition of sea creatures and polar research.

The final goal is to develop spatial plans which define the effective use of marine areas for different marine activities and sustainable use of marine and coastal resources. Thus to create a framework for coordinated, transparent and sustainable decision making on the basis of reliable data. Applying an ecosystem-based approach and the transboundary cooperation are of great importance for boosting the sustainable growth of marine and coastal economies.

The Surveying & Maritime internet of things Education (SMARTSEA) project aims to develop an advanced interactive certified MSc course related to Maritime & Surveyor IoT applications that will train individuals with the necessary skills & knowledge to work in the rising Smart Maritime & Surveying industry. The overall goal is to develop an advanced interactive certified MSc course related to Maritime & Surveyor IoT applications that will train individuals with the necessary skills & knowledge to work in the rising Smart Maritime & Surveying industry. The course is also formulated to stimulate transversal competencies such as an increased sense of initiative & entrepreneurship. It will follow the ECTS credit standards for certification recognition across the EU. The project will feature some of the best in this area to maximize the potential of IoT and AI in this industry. In addition to developing this technology, it aims to train professionals who will integrate this technology into the largest merchant and cruise vessels in the world. It will also train the captains of these vessels and will contribute with their technology to increase the efficiency of the sector, optimizing their development and reducing the environmental impact by reducing emissions.

The Black Sea shores are vulnerable to anthropogenic and technogenic activities. The sources of marine litter are the basin-based problem which is closely related to ecosystem and public health, conservation of the environment, marine habitat, biodiversity, and sustainable development in the Black Sea region. At present, the framework of the marine litter problem has been well understood but solutions are not still clear due to many variables linked closely with the nature of the problem based on cultural, welfare, traditional and educational differences, and lack of knowledge.

YaYakarsa is a public-based scientific study (citizen-science) created to collect data on the spread of jellyfish and jelly-like species, to understand the effects of alien species, to collect data about venomous species, and to create a first-aid knowledge that can be used by the public in such cases. For this reason, the project, which was initiated in 2014 in order to understand and learn about abnormal jellyfish explosions, increases, and harmful effects on the coasts of our country, to move the issue to a scientific level academically and to guide decision-makers, has also become a national jellyfish monitoring study.

The overall goal of the project was to support efforts to protect and restore the environmental quality and sustainability of the Black Sea. The additional specific objectives of this project were: improving the availability and quality of chemical and biological data to provide for integrated assessments of the Black Sea state of the environment, including pressures and impacts, and increasing the number and size of protected areas in the Black Sea and their degree of protection. The main Ocean Literacy activity developed during the project was the enhancement of stakeholders’ participation and public awareness of environmental problems, accomplished through face-to-face meetings and delivered questionnaires to find out their opinion on marine issues.

MARLITER is a project employing information technologies for better environmental monitoring at regional scale and decrease of solid waste in the marine environment. The aim is to improve the availability of online public access data and data tools for environmental monitoring and adaptive management policies, supporting innovative non-formal education and joint measures on the reduction of marine litter across the region.

Monitoring of Demersal Stock Project in the Black Sea (DEMSTOK) aims to get the highest sustainable products from Demersal fish stocks and to obtain and analyze the fisheries data collection. The objectives of this project can be summarized as follows. The most accurate and reliable determination of the potential of demersal fish stocks to be managed, The most effective and sustainable evaluation of these resources, Determination of the available fishing power and the amounts (entangling nets and bottom trawl), and Determination of the amount of catch per unit effort (biomass) in commercial and experimental fishing for Demersal fish stocks, Determination of by-catch and discard rates in bottom trawl, Evaluating the current situation of stocks in international platforms such as STECF and GFCM, Presenting the findings to the decision-makers, Providing the continuation of the time series on demersal fishing in the region.

The ANEMONE project aims to deliver, through collaborative efforts among partners, a common strategy related to the Joint Monitoring of the Black Sea, using the most adequate common agreed assessment criteria and indicators, in order to assess the status of the Black Sea, as a basis for further actions. The Project aims at establishing enhanced cross-border contacts within the Black Sea Basin (scientists and stakeholders networking, forums, and establishment of lasting partnership), enhanced knowledge and skills (the exchange of experience and good practices, innovation, harmonized methodologies, and joint research), as well as concrete and visible outputs (pilot projects, shared tools, online open-access resources).

The MERSCIN (International Mersin Science Night) project sets out to host a European Researchers Night in the Turkish Mediterranean coastal city of Mersin. The main aims of the project are to increase public awareness about science and the work of researchers and bridge the gap between scientists and the general public, to actively promote science and research as a vitally important and rewarding career path for the young generations participating and to instill greater environmental awareness in citizens and impart the need to protect dwindling local habitats from the ongoing mass urbanization whilst also convincing the participating stakeholders of the same issues. Here in this event, METU Institute of Marine Sciences conducts 13 activities representing marine research and the Black Sea. As quizzes about Monk seals, marine creatures puzzle, ocean acidification experiment, hands-on ocean current experiment, microplastic examination under the microscope, DNA game, and so on.

The overall objective of MELTEMI (Marine Litter Transnational Legislation Enchancement and Improvement) Project is to enhance the legal framework and increase the capacity of public authorities, stakeholders and society at large on mitigating marine litter pollution. Along with the assessment of marine litter in beaches and sea, the project foresees an active engagement of the society and the key-players; will be achieved by informing, educating training and networking them on a science and policy assessment framework of marine litter.

REST-COAST will provide the tools to address some of the key challenges to coastal ecosystems today – all consequences of a long history of environmental degradation of our rivers and coasts. Improve coastal restoration practice and techniques through new hands-on restoration projects within the REST-COAST Pilots, supported by Restoration Platforms to demonstrate and scale-up measures for wider use. Generate new tools and data to assess risk reduction at different climate change levels to provide consistent risk estimates across time scales and lower financial, social, and political barriers to large-scale restoration. Develop a scalable plan for coastal adaptation through large-scale restoration based on trade-offs and synergies between biodiversity and socio-economic development, aiming for financially viable solutions incorporating climate-resilient ecosystem services. Support the Green Deal social transformation and engagement through a new Digital Platform dashboard, a Carbon Footprint Counter, and a new App and Video game focusing on the decarbonization of coastal adaptation.

The overall aim of DOORS is, by working together with stakeholders, to implement the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda, support the successful implementation of Blue Growth, and contribute to a healthy, productive, and resilient Black Sea. To fulfill this and to address the four specific objectives (below), DOORS will implement three parallel working programs: starting with a System of Systems (SoS) for the Black Sea, a platform for evidence-based knowledge development co-designed with policymakers and covering all aspects of the physical, chemical, and biological parameters of the Black Sea. The SoS platform will allow for a holistic approach to the management of the Black Sea and will be the core of two further work streams:(i) the Blue Growth Accelerator (BGA), which will identify start-ups and entrepreneurs for innovation, provide professional support to unlock their potential, enhance the exploitation and visibility of knowledge and facilitate constructive exchange between scientists, entrepreneurs and politicians for Blue Growth development; and (ii) Knowledge Transfer and Training (KTT), which will utilize existing collaborations between the different actors in science and policymaking, promote a culture of openness, share best practice and knowledge to address impacts and engage stakeholders from the beginning of the project aiming at developing trust and confidence.

The overall objective of the project is to coordinate the development of the SRIA operational Implementation plan based on these principles The SRIA and its Implementation Plan will guide stakeholders from academia, funding agencies, industry, policy, and society to address the fundamental Black Sea challenges, to promote blue growth and economic prosperity of the Black Sea region, to build critical support systems and innovative research infrastructure and to improve education and capacity building.

The company’s management provides events to inform and help its team get up to speed on green best practices.

This program is a general call for undergraduate students. There are at least 5 marine projects where students get on board and gain fieldwork experience. Students are able to spent their 6 months with experts and enhance their theorotical knowledge with practice.

Final destination – Black Sea – Exhibition on plastic pollution in the Black Sea.

On the occasion of World Oceans Week from 21 June 2021, the National Museum of Natural History at BAS presented an exhibition dedicated to the fight against plastic pollution of the seas and oceans. The exposition was accompanied by a poster exhibition, organized in cooperation with the Sofia Municipality.

The Regional Essay Competition for the Youth aimed to raise awareness and motivate young people to take action against the growing marine pollution challenge in the Black Sea. The Competition targeted high-school students, 15-18 years, from the 13 BSEC Member States, who were invited to submit an essay addressing one or several questions: How can you help tackle marine litter in the Black Sea region?; Why is marine litter prevention important?; What do you think is standing in the way of a clean Black Sea?; Have you ever participated in public or youth initiatives to collect marine litter? What would motivate you to do so?

No matter how far from the sea we live we all have a great impact on it and educating people about the importance and the beauty of marine environments is the key to creating positive attitudes towards the sea. The idea behind this project involves a worldwide contest for young persons up to the age of 21. In this edition of the Contest, participants are asked to use photos or films to present a story of their seas. Through their participation youth of different natural and cultural heritage share their views on marine issues in a creative way. All works submitted are reviewed by a panel of International Judges. Best photos, films, and stories will be presented as a part of the UN Ocean Conference 2022 in Lisbon.