Cool Blue Nordic Partners
The Cool Blue Nordic project consortium comprises four partners: a private consultancy firm (s.Pro), a Swedish university (University of Gothenburg), a Finnish local action group (Action Ostrobothnia) and a Danish community association (Havhøst).
s.Pro – sustainable projects GmbH (DE) *Coordinator
A private German consultancy firm with many years in project coordination and communication across marine spatial planning (MSP), coastal management, ocean literacy, aquaculture and business development. s.Pro is a key partner in the EU4Algae stakeholder forum and a founding member of the SUBMARINER Network for Blue Growth EEIG.
University of Gothenburg (SE)
A university in Sweden’s second largest city, Gothenburg. During 2022, a platform for small-scale cultivation has been built in Frihamnen in Gothenburg. The blue community garden is built as a future prototype. The goal is for it to be a meeting place for the seafood of the future, where visitors can learn more about seafood and farming, but also get to participate in growing and preparing new food from the sea. It can be compared to an allotment on land, but instead of potatoes and carrots, a host of species such as macroalgae, mussels, oystersm shrimp, crab and tunicates are grown.
I Finland: Aktion Österbotten
Action Ostrobothnia’s area of operation is extensive, it includes the 13 bilingual municipalities in Ostrobothnia and Karleby in Middle Ostrobothnia. The core of Aktion Ostrobothnia’s activities are the local communities, such as the villages. They also want to maintain the Ostrobothnian entrepreneurial spirit. The association acts as an innovative bridge between the cities (e.g. Karleby and Vaasa) and the surrounding countryside and at the same time it also crosses language boundaries.
Havhøst (DK)
An association of maritime gardens, NGOs, schools, companies and quite ordinary people who share a love for the big blue, food from the sea and sustainable development. They aim to promote what they call regenerative cultivation in the sea, and to invite as many people as possible to take part in the blue-green transition.
Together, they have a wealth of expertise and experience to drive forward community-scale regenerative aquaculture in Northern Europe. Building on the Danish and Swedish initiatives as well as progress made in third countries, further avenues for regenerative community enterprises will be explored in Finland’s unique socio-ecological environment, helping to build a framework of principles that can be applied to restore ecosystems and build communities anywhere in the world.
Cool Blue Baltic Partners
The Cool Blue Baltic project consortium comprises eleven partners from all European Baltic Member States.
SUBMARINER Network for Blue Growth EEIG (DE) *Coordinator
A non-profit European Economic Interest Grouping of over 50 members across the Baltic and North Seas, comprising universities, NGOs, research institutions, public authorities and individuals with a shared passion for sustainable use of marine resources. Submariner is currently coordinating and communicating around 30 international European research and innovation projects, working closely with the European Commission. The lead partner of Cool Blue Nordic (s.Pro) is also a founding member of the SUBMARINER Network.
Havhøst (DK)
An association of maritime gardens, NGOs, schools, companies and quite ordinary people who share a love for the big blue, food from the sea and sustainable development. They aim to promote what they call regenerative cultivation in the sea, and to invite as many people as possible to take part in the blue-green transition.
I Finland: Aktion Österbotten
Action Ostrobothnia’s area of operation is extensive, it includes the 13 bilingual municipalities in Ostrobothnia and Karleby in Middle Ostrobothnia. The core of Aktion Ostrobothnia’s activities are the local communities, such as the villages. They also want to maintain the Ostrobothnian entrepreneurial spirit. The association acts as an innovative bridge between the cities (e.g. Karleby and Vaasa) and the surrounding countryside and at the same time it also crosses language boundaries.
University of Gothenburg (SE)
A university in Sweden’s second largest city, Gothenburg. During 2022, a platform for small-scale cultivation has been built in Frihamnen in Gothenburg. The blue community garden is built as a future prototype. The goal is for it to be a meeting place for the seafood of the future, where visitors can learn more about seafood and farming, but also get to participate in growing and preparing new food from the sea. It can be compared to an allotment on land, but instead of potatoes and carrots, a host of species such as macroalgae, mussels, oysters, shrimp, crab and tunicates are grown.
Coastal Union of Germany (DE)
Coastal Union of Germany has the goal of promoting the sustainable development of coasts and seas in Germany. In the Cool Blue Baltic project they will map existing relevant initiatives in Germany, the German licensing landscape and assess the feasibility of community-driven aquaculture initiatives, contributing to the development of a common licensing framework for community-scale regenerative aquaculture and an MPA stewardship programme.
University of Tartu (EE)
A leading Estonian university offering research-based education, from a wide variety of international degree programmes, exchange opportunities, Estonian language courses, MOOCs, International Summer University and other short-term courses. They also offer research projects in four broad areas: natural and exact sciences (realia et naturalia), medical sciences (medicina), social sciences (socialia) and humanities (humaniora). In Cool Blue Baltic, they will be primarily responsible for the development of a data-sharing network between Cool Blue partner institutions.
Latvian Institute of Aquatic Ecology (LV)
An agency of Daugavpils University and an internationally competitive scientific institute conducting academic and applied research in aquatic ecology, focusing on seasonal dynamics of plankton and benthic organisms, impact of non-indigenous species on natural ecosystems, distribution and impact of pollutants, e.g. microplastics, and development of spatial planning potential for biodiversity conservation.
Gdynia Maritime University (PL)
The largest state school of higher maritime education in Poland and one of the largest in Europe. Since 1920, the University has been preparing graduates for officer positions on board merchant marine vessels and managerial positions at the land-based institutions and companies representing the maritime industry and coastal regions. The University’s four Faculties offer degrees in Navigation, Management and Quality Science, Marine Engineering, and Electrical Engineering. Over 5000 students are currently enrolled at the University.
ECOPELAG (SE)
A small enterprise farming mussels in the Baltic Proper on the Swedish East coast. The company was founded in 2015 by Martin Reutgard and Martin Karlsson. The association Ecopelag is not for profit and is driven by the vision “to speed up the recovery of a viable Baltic Sea and ensure sustainable use of its resources through innovation and concrete measures”. In 2016, “Small mussels with great value” was launched, which today includes about 10 projects with the common goal of developing large-scale mussel farming in the Baltic Sea to achieve a significant and cost-effective nutrient absorption with a focus on circularity and sustainable growth in both blue and green industries. They are also a partner in the BalticMUPPETS i3 project.
Klaipeda Science & Technology Park (LT)
A public institution and a non-profit organization. It was established in 2002, in cooperation with Klaipėda University and the Ministry of Economy of the Republic of Lithuania (Ministry of the Economy and Innovation of the Republic of Lithuania – since 2019). KSTP is a business support agency focused on promoting innovations. KSTP provides specialized services in the areas of green and blue (marine) technologies, which we have established as our priorities. We are actively involved in international project activities, as well as in the formation and coordination of partnerships and clusters. KSTP specialists provide consultations for companies and individuals which are mostly related to the issues of establishing and developing their business, creating new products and services, as well as the protection of intellectual property. Currently, KSTP community consists of around 100 companies, public institutions and divisions of international companies, located in its premises.
Simrishamn Marine Centre (SE)
Part of Simrishman Kommun. The municipality of Simrishamn works actively with sea and water issues to contribute to a better environment in the Baltic Sea. In 2010, Marint centrum was established as a meeting place with a focus on sea, water and coastal areas. They run educational courses on low-trophic aquaculture and work with a local initiative Kivik Tång in the local area.
Together, they have a wealth of expertise and experience to drive forward community-scale regenerative aquaculture in the Baltic Sea. The project will aim to establish real-life sites around the Baltic to engage local communities and raise the profile of regenerative aquaculture. Ultimately, the partners hope to create an international network of sea farming initiatives which both regenerate ecosystems and revitalise local economies.