As part of the official satellite events of the European Research and Innovation Days 2025, the conference “R&I for a Competitive Green Transition”, held on 23–24 June 2025, highlighted impactful, research-based solutions driving Europe’s green transition. The event showcased how innovation is enhancing citizens’ quality of life, boosting EU economic competitiveness, and contributing to the implementation of the European Green Deal.

At the heart of the conference was an exhibition featuring 15 cutting-edge projects funded under Horizon Europe and Horizon 2020, as well as the results achieved by PRIMA – Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area, the Circular Bio-based Europe Joint Undertaking and the Green Deal Support Office. Among the 15 projects, BlueMissionMed was proudly selected to represent a successful project funded under the EU Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030.”

The BlueMissionMed booth offered a dynamic platform to spotlight innovative and transformative solutions addressing the health of our ocean and waters, particularly in the Mediterranean Basin. Through live demonstrations and compelling videos, several Horizon Europe projects showcased their achievements in combating pollution and preserving marine ecosystems hosted at the BlueMissionMed booth. These included: INSPIRE, REMEDIES, SeaClear2.0, MAELSTROM, iMERMAID, and NETTAG+.

Also showcased at the booth — through dedicated video features — were BlueMissionMed awards winners, recognised by the project in collaboration with the European Commission to spotlight impactful initiatives that support the objectives of the Mission Ocean and Waters and to celebrate inspirational good practices that can serve as replicable models for other stakeholders.

BlueMissionMed stood out for its central role in bridging innovation providers and solution adopters, offering a suite of support services including information-sharing, inspiring demonstrations, capacity building, networking, and collaboration opportunities. Its contribution to advancing the Mission Ocean and Waters objectives in the Mediterranean region was widely recognized.

A highlight at the booth was the presentation of the BlueMissionMed children’s book “Our Blue Treasure,” created to raise awareness among young audiences about the impact of daily actions on ocean health, and the reciprocal importance of water well-being for human life. Visitors also explored the online portfolio of transformative solutions for the Mediterranean, now featuring 36+ entries. Through a mobile laptop station, stakeholders could browse this growing collection, filtering innovations by industry sector and implementation dimension.

The booth drew high-level attention, including visits from Ekaterina Zaharieva (European Commissioner for Startups, Research and Innovation), Marc Lemaître (Director-General for Research and Innovation), and John Bell (Director of the “Healthy Planet” Directorate, European Commission), all of whom expressed strong appreciation for BlueMissionMed’s work and the showcased innovations.

Pictures credits: ©️European Union 2025, Source: Irene Campi