NEWS: Strengthening Cooperation: GROWTH4BLUE Partners Meet in Bari

The 2nd project meeting of GROWTH4BLUE took place in July, in Bari, Italy, bringing together all project partners for two and a half days focusing on collaboration and sustainable growth for the Blue Economy. The event was hosted by TECNOPOLIS Science and Technology Park, with the Region of Western Greece, Lead Partner of the project, coordinating the sessions and the University of Peloponnese, providing technical insights and scientific support.

Throughout the meeting, partners presented progress updates from each participating country, exchanged experiences, and reviewed upcoming activities dedicated to transforming the Adriatic-Ionian region’s Blue Economy into a robust, future-ready sector. Discussions centered on promoting innovation, advancing technological development, and creating new employment opportunities in the Blue Economy sectors across the Adriatic–Ionian region. In particular, the progress of the comprehensive Analysis of the Blue Economy Ecosystem, identifying key sectors and innovation opportunities was discussed while at the same time the Labor Market Analysis Report, offering insights into in-demand skills and competencies, and addressing educational and training system gaps was raised as a core element.
The Online Tool for Job Postings Analysis designed using Natural Language Processing (NLP) technology to extract and analyze data for actionable insights was also presented.

Partners also focused on the formation of the Regional Blue Economy Networks (RBENs) as well as the formation of the Transnational Blue Economy Network (TBEN) that will initiate its activities on September 2025.

This meeting marked another important milestone in reinforcing cross-border collaboration, aligning project actions with the objectives of the Interreg IPA ADRION programme, and enhancing impact at both regional and macro-regional levels.