EXcellence and competitiveness in marine algae AQUAculture for a sustainable Black Sea (EX-AQUA)

Short description of the project: EX-AQUA is a three-year project funded by Horizon Europe aimed at supporting the National Institute for Marine Research and Development "Grigore Antipa" (NIMRD) of Romania in becoming a centre of excellence in marine algae aquaculture, as a catalyst in the Black Sea.

Expected results: The project seeks to transfer knowledge, tailored to the Black Sea environment, through 1) the creation of  an Excellence Science in marine algae aquaculture; 2) the enforcement of Capacity Building for NIMRD to increase their impact in Research, Development, and Innovation (RDI); 3) strengthing the local Innovation ecosystem for the industrial uptake of new technological solutions for  marine algae aquaculture; and, 4)creating Synergies through the creation of a Cluster for Marine Applied Aquaculture. 

Application/relevance: This project aims to unlock structural changes enabling stronger collaborations between industry, academia, policy makers and civil society, to add the EU South-East region to the marine and algae aquaculture map, reducing disparities among EU regions.