BRIDGE-BS Winter School
Science for Policy towards a Sustainable Blue Economy in the Black Sea
Athens | 19 - 20 March 2025
On 19 – 20 March 2025, the BRIDGE – BS Winter School “Science for Policy towards a Sustainable Blue Economy in the Black Sea” was organised successfully by the International Centre for Black Sea Studies (ICBSS), in cooperation with the CPMR Balkan and Black Sea Commission (BBSC CPMR) and the Technology Centre of the Sea – CETMAR Foundation (CETMAR), in Athens, Greece, within the framework of the EU Horizon 2020-funded project BRIDGE-BS.
The BRIDGE-BS Winter School was an awareness and training workshop aiming to bridge the gap between scientific research and policy processes through hands-on training, knowledge exchange and collaboration.
Building on the BRIDGE-BS outputs, the winter school provided tailored content and interactive exercises, pairing up ten early career policymakers and scientists from the BRIDGE – BS countries, i.e. Bulgaria, Georgia, the Republic of Moldova, Romania, Türkiye, and Ukraine. The participants were equipped with the necessary skills for effective communication and collaboration between policy and science, with the aim to improve the relevance and applicability of research in policy development.
Facilitators of the winter school were Ms. Georgia Chantzi, International Centre for Black Sea Studies (ICBSS) and Ms. María Pérez, Technology Centre of the Sea – CETMAR Foundation Spain, both BRIDGE-BS partners, who designed and developed the two-day workshop with the aim to familiarize scientists and policymakers with science language, the policy processes, and the different paradigms in which scientists and policymakers operate.
Expert talks were delivered by Dr. Mustafa Yücel, Institute of Marine Sciences, Middle East Technical University (METU-IMS), the BRIDGE-BS project coordinator, who presented the project and highlighted its approach to the pressuring need for sustainability in the Black Sea region; Ms. Lydia Papadaki, Athena Research and Innovation Centre (ATHENA RC), a DOORS project partner, who presented the methodology and results of stakeholders’ engagement processes; and Mr. Aleksandre Gogaladze, European Marine Science Educators Association (EMSEA), a BRIDGE – BS partner, who talked about the significance of Ocean Literacy for Sustainability and the first-ever Black Sea Ocean Literacy Network.
An interactive educational simulation game was organised by Ms. Émilie Riclet, Stratégies Mer et Littoral (SML) France, a BRIDGE – BS partner, based on the Report “2050 Sustainable Blue Economy Imaginaries for the Black Sea”, that explores four distinct scenarios for the future of the Black Sea’s Blue Economy, shaped by different governance and innovation pathways.
The Winter School was organised within the framework of the EU Horizon 2020-funded project BRIDGE-BS, as part of the project’s activities to promote the upskilling of policymakers to support science-based policy.
BRIDGE-BS is a 54-month project involving 31 partners from the Black Sea countries, EU Member States, and regional organizations, coordinated by the Middle East Technical University Institute of Marine Sciences (METU IMS), Türkiye. Launched in 2021, the project proposes a multidisciplinary, multi-sectoral approach, through several diverse activities and tools, as a critical contribution to the science-based policy needed to preserve the Black Sea ecosystems and support the sustainable development of Blue Economy in the Black Sea.
For more information about the project BRIDGE – BS, please visit http://bridgeblacksea.org/
