Total funding of 9 million euros and up to 2 million euros per project is expected to be made available through the open call of TASC RestoreMed, a new European program that aims to restore the aquatic ecosystems of the Mediterranean Basin with 100% funding from the EU Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”, announced Impact Hub Athens, a partner of the program.
"Mediterranean surface temperatures are increasing by ~0.41 °C per decade and sea heat waves are becoming more prolonged," says Dimitris Kokkinakis, co-founder of Impact Hub Athens. fisheries, tourism and coastal communities, and TASC RestoreMed is specifically targeting solutions to address these challenges.”
The program invites research and educational institutions, start-ups, NGOs and bodies of Local Government, the Region and Civil Society, associations, as well as companies, active in the eligible geographical areas, to submit proposals for funding and comprehensive technical support, with the aim of accelerating the transition of the Mediterranean Basin to a sustainable blue economy.
At the same time, it encourages local communities, empowering their role in shaping solutions for the marine environment.
Two categories of support
TASC RestoreMed offers project funding for two distinct categories.
"Community-led Actions" are aimed at projects that already have verified results from research or pilot application and are ready for scale-up and implementation on a wider scale, with funding from 200,000 to 2 million euros per project and a total available capital of 7 million euros. Specifically, they will fund solutions that are at least Technology Readiness Level 4 (TRL4) or demonstrate Business Readiness Level 4 (BRL4) and Societal Readiness Level 5 (SRL5).
At the same time, the "Transition Agendas" category will support at least twenty projects, aimed at local government and regional bodies that want to develop strategic roadmaps for the transition to sustainable practices, with funding of up to 100,000 euros each and a total budget of 2 million euros.
The call for proposals is expected in the coming months, with selected projects receiving comprehensive support for 12-24 months.
It is worth emphasizing that the selected projects will gain access to a comprehensive service package that includes: personalized technical assistance, consulting services on business models and policies, as well as the RestoreMed TOOLS digital toolbox with innovative tools such as the Ocean Digital Twin.
Three Greek bodies participate in the international consortium of the four-year initiative: The Hellenic Center for Marine Research (ELKETHE), which is the coordinator of the program with a central role in its successful implementation, the National Technical University of Athens (NTUA), which participates in key Work Packages offering technical and scientific expertise, and the entrepreneurship hub Impact Hub Athens.
"Greece is emerging as a key partner of the European mission Ocean Mission", underlines Dimitris Kokkinakis. "The cooperation of ELKETHE, NTUA and Impact Hub Athens proves that the country has the knowledge and the dynamics to shape solutions for sustainable maritime development."
For more information about the open call, interested parties can subscribe to the program newsletter.
