The 3rd EFFECTIVE Consortium Meeting was successfully held from 23–25 February 2026 in Blanes, Spain, hosted by the Centre d’Estudis Avançats de Blanes (CEAB-CSIC), part of the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC). Bringing together more than 40 consortium partners, the meeting served as a key moment to review progress, strengthen coordination across work packages, and translate technical results into aligned next steps.
Day 1 was fully dedicated to internal coordination and technical exchange at CEAB. The programme opened with a welcome session outlining meeting goals, followed by project-wide updates from all work packages. Discussions focused on moving “From Data to Action: Making Blue Parks Work for People,” alongside presentations on the Governance Toolkit (“Shared Seas, Sustained Futures”), Digital Twin Pilot 1, live mapping of interdependencies, and modelling activities. The day combined plenary dialogue with parallel technical sessions, creating space for both strategic reflection and hands-on exchange.
Day 2 shifted the focus to field engagement and pilot-site integration. The consortium travelled to L’Estartit, where sessions were hosted at Espai Medes in the harbour area. Participants visited the Medes Islands Natural Park during a two-hour boat trip, linking project discussions to real-world marine protection and restoration practice. The COSEA citizen science application supported on-site engagement and documentation. Upon returning to Blanes, the programme continued at CEAB with the GPA-CSIC Blue Carbon presentation, “Mapping the Matte: Posidonia Carbon Accounting using Advanced Sonar,” and an OOF-CSIC session on the information pillar in Pilots 1 and 3, highlighting early results and data integration progress.
Day 3 returned to CEAB and centred on marine restoration and forward planning. A keynote address by Simonetta Fraschetti, titled “Lessons learned in a decade of marine restoration,” provided strategic insight drawn from long-term restoration experience. The programme continued with a roundtable discussion on xRestoration projects involving IMEDEA, PEREMCAT, OOF, CORAL SOUL, OE, and ICM, followed by a focused session to consolidate the 90-Day Action Plan. The day reinforced collaboration across scientific, technical, and governance dimensions of the project.
Overall, the three days in Blanes combined strategic alignment, technical depth, and field-based learning. By integrating digital innovation, blue carbon science, governance tools, and restoration practice, the meeting strengthened the consortium’s shared direction and reinforced EFFECTIVE’s commitment to delivering measurable impact for marine ecosystems and coastal communities.
