Data and Scenarios for a Sustainable Mediterranean Blue Economy – MEDSEAPLAN

The World Ocean Council Europe is proposing to lead a consortium of 15 partners representing research institutes, universities, enterprises and institutions linked to Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP), to implement the MEDSEAPLAN project ('Data and Scenarios for a Sustainable Mediterranean Blue Economy) over 36 months. The project will focus on future-proof Maritime Spatial Planning, the need for advanced data and an increased inclusion of maritime industry in the development of MSP-relevant foresight scenarios. MEDSEAPLAN aims to operationalise impactful change in sea basin-level multi-sectoral MSP development with data-driven and industry-based input. The project will focus on assessing current and future data needs for regional MSP, and flowing from this, on innovative solutions to create data for MSP (and transforming it into information that can be used by MSP planners). Concrete pathways to collect innovative data sets for MSP will revolve around nature-based solutions for improved biodiversity; including data from maritime industry vessels; and the design and demonstration of innovative floating data buoys. The strength of MEDSEAPLAN lies in its multi-sectoral, multi-actor and cross-border approach. The project will design a set of scenarios, which will be co-developed with stakeholders through assessing their data needs and testing these scenarios to assess potential solutions to future impacts brought forward by the maritime industry leaders. In this way, MEDSEAPLAN will contribute to the development of MSP that is of a more robust knowledge-based and data-driven nature, realising a more sustainable Blue Economy in the Mediterranean Region.