Project’s activities

ArtReefs is composed by 5 work packages of which two transversal dealing with communication and dissemination activities and with administrative and financial issues.


A first work package, entitled “Joint Vision” responds to specific objective to increase awareness, foster a mutual understanding and disseminate capacity and tools to foster inclusive Blue Growth, across sectors, levels and other regions in the Mediterranean and Black Sea Basins.

The consortium members will initiate a dialogue between partners, associated stakeholders and experts, in a cross-sectoral and transnational debate, resulting in the statement of a transversal Joint Vision on the potential of Artificial Reefs for Blue Growth, and an Action Plan bringing together the collective capacity of partners and their networks to produce practical and shareable deliverables:

activites

  • A specific guidelines will be designed on how to design, deploy and maintain artificial reef infrastructures for tourism and inclusive Blue Growth including a Comprehensive check list, about the technical, environmental, economic, social and administrative details that need to be taken into account to identify transversal opportunities and specific obstacles.
  • A business model generator, specifying how to promote, plan and adapt viable interventions for Tourism Packages around Artificial Reefs to meet the objectives, integrate complementary activities and maximise positive impact at local level.
  • A WebGIS application will be developed. The GIS (Geographical Information System) will be accessible as a web application and will be developed and tested as support to stakeholders when making decisions concerning the deployment of Artificial Reefs.

The second work package, entitled “Innovative tourism package and branding: sustainable opportunities for the southern basins” responds to specific objective to develop innovative and comprehensive tourism packages boosting the potential of artificial reefs with collaborative multi-stakeholder approaches that unlock Blue Growth.

A comprehensive tourism package will be developed, configured to match representative combinations of characteristic Mediterranean and Black Sea environmental, social and economic assets and opportunities.

A concise Guide on how to construct Tourism Packages around Artificial Reefs will be designed. The Guidelines shall serve as guidance for regional and local public stakeholders, entrepreneurs, educational and research institutions, businesses and other tourism stakeholders on how to best exploit the potential of artificial Reefs for comprehensive tourism packages, how to engage stakeholders and how to overcome obstacles to effectively collaborate and create a comprehensive tourism package around Artificial Reefs.

This guide will be put in practice through the organisation of a cross-sectoral workshop in Varna, Bulgaria organised by UBBSLA. Deliverables: D.2.1 Guide for the development of Artificial Reefs Tourism Packages (M11); D.2.2 Artificial Reef Tourism Package Varna (M12).

Additionally, Expert recommendations will be shared on how to develop innovative, competitive and integrated branding for private and public stakeholders, focused on a tourism package related to the smart use of artificial reefs in the Mediterranean and Black seas, in line with global trends, and committed towards maximizing the scope for successful, sustainable and inclusive growth.


The third work package, entitled “Unlocking Blue Growth” to facilitate adaptation, transfer and application of tourism packages by public and private stakeholders at local and sub-regional level in the Mediterranean and Black Sea Basins.

Specialised working sessions for stakeholders named Blue Innovation Labs will be organised in order to explore demonstrative pilot or for-profit applications. The work sessions will explore the project’s outcomes in depth to explore the transfer to other regions in the Mediterranean and Black Sea Basins by tackling the following points:

  • ArtReefs tourism packages: adaptation to local characteristics
  • Integration of alternative or complementary activities
  • Collaborative regional branding
  • Access to Funding (public and private funding including structural funds)

 

During the working sessions, the stakeholders, composed by decision-makers, public and private entities active in the coastal economy sector, will learn different approaches and have the chance to:

  • Explore the peculiarities, strengths, weaknesses and needs of the local areas involved in the project, in order to enhance new tourism packages and promote these areas;
  • Develop new joint initiatives in real-life contexts in order to validate the proposals;
  • Exchange promising and good practices;
  • Regional institutions and local representatives will discuss about the outcomes of Innovation Lab exercises as solutions to foster a new approach for regional branding.

Participants will be prepared to use tools and techniques specifically designed to improve their knowledge and capabilities about Blue Growth strategy.

At the end of the event, companies and research centers will produce a draft on customized initiatives and best practices that can be refined for implementation; institutions and decision-makers will produce a draft to define a common strategy of regional branding.

 

Match-making of public and private entities in a Brokerage event will be organised to facilitate the emergence of = cross-sectorial and transdisciplinary industrial and research partnerships in the realm of comprehensive tourism packages using artificial reefs for blue growth.

activities