MedCities attended the General Assembly of the BlueMissionMed (BMM) Horizon project in Brussels on 12th February. The objective of the initiative is the creation of a Mediterranean Sea Basin “Lighthouse” governance structure meant to support the implementation of the EU Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters. It is one out of four flagship initiatives pursuing further cooperation and institutionalization in European oceans and seas.

The General Assembly was a great opportunity to see the fruits of one year of implementation (e.g. shaping and networking of endorsing authorities, consolidation of national hubs of reference for project development) and the multiple actions that will help support policy knowledge & transfer to a wide array of stakeholders, including local authorities. The Mission Ocean and Waters service portal is especially relevant to this end. It now contains a dedicated page on the Calls for Proposals from Associated Regions within the Horizon Europe program. There are currently 5 calls open.

The meeting was also an opportunity to gather information on upcoming networking and funding activities for BMM, MedCities members, and other territorial authorities:

• The BMM consortium will attend the Mission Ocean Waters Forum & Matchmaking (Brussels, 4-5 of March 2024), as the event gathers all relevant projects but also funding authorities and philanthropists to match needs with availability to support. It is held in the context of the very first edition of the European Ocean Days ( 04-08 March 2024).

• Organized by MedCities, the BMM project will also hold its 2nd Lighthouse Event targeting Mediterranean cities. This will take place during the UN Ocean Decade Conference (Barcelona, 10-12 of April 2024). The Conference, co-hosted by the Municipality of Barcelona, the European Commission, the Union for the Mediterranean, the IEO CSIC, and the BMM partnership, is actively focused on ‘delivering the science we need for the ocean we want’.

• MedCities and BMM consortium will further join the 9th edition of the Our Ocean Conference (Athens, 15-17 of April 2024), developed around 6 main areas of action and with a focus on coastal areas and islands.