A Mission to restore our ocean and waters by 2030

One of the five EU Mission areas is Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030. This Mission aims to protect and restore the health of our ocean and waters through research and innovation, citizen engagement and blue investments. The Mission will address the water system as a whole, with measurable and quantifiable goals for restoring ecosystems and biodiversity, zero pollution, decarbonisation and emissions reductions. 

Following the interim report published in June 2020, the Mission was launched and the Implementation Plan was published alongside this factsheet in September 2021. The plan lays out that the Mission will have been accomplished when quantifiable and measurable goals of the EU Biodiversity Strategy, the EU Action Plan Towards Zero Pollution for Air, Soil and Water and the EU Climate Law have been reached.

Main elements of Starfish mission lighthouses

Implementation


 

The Mission will strive to reach these goals by deploying innovative solutions at basin scale, with each basin focusing on a particular area in the developing and piloting phase (2021-2025). The Mission lighthouses are: 

  1. Danube river basin: protect and restore ecosystems and biodiversity (freshwater)
  2. Atlantic and Arctic coast: protect and restore ecosystems and biodiversity (marine)
  3. Mediterranean Sea: prevent and eliminate pollution 
  4. Baltic and North Sea basin: make the blue economy carbon-neutral.

Phase two (2026 - 2030) will focus on deployment and upscaling, with the replication of pilot activities. The scale-up actions would be carried out through annual calls for expressions of interest from 2025 onwards to macroregions, regions and communities looking to become Mission scale-up sites.

ERRIN input to Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030


The governance of our oceans and waters is a fragmented framework spread over all levels – from international to local. Regional and local authorities and stakeholders will be an important player in the development and steering to create more coherence and efficient cooperation both in terms of investments and research and innovation agendas.

2020

In July 2020, the Blue Economy Working Group organised a webinar to discuss the development of the Mission with the European Commission and a member of the Mission Board.

2021

Building on the webinar in 2020, ERRIN’s Blue Economy Working Group organised in June 2021 a dialogue together with the Mission Secretariat focusing on the area-based lighthouses proposed in the Mission. The event presented an opportunity for ERRIN members to come together with those working on the Mission and its Implementation Plan to discuss potential lighthouse activities, scale and governance. During the meeting, inspiring examples were presented from ERRIN members including WaterCampus Leeuwarden, North Norway, Mid-Norway, Turku Southwest Finland, Welsh Higher Education, Emilia Romagna and South Denmark. 

The report on the dialogue includes ERRIN's key messages on the scale, scope, governance and synergies of the area-based lighthouses within the Mission. 

2022

ERRIN provided its input on the Mission Charter in February 2022, which was shared with the Mission Secretariat, and shared its messages for the Horizon Europe Missions Work Programme 2023-2024 in May 2022 where the members' concerns over the rigid and narrow thematic basins of the Mission were raised. 

2023

ERRIN has through its Blue Economy Working Group continued the dialogue with the Mission Secretariat. The project tasked with developing the Mission Implementation Support Platform, in which ERRIN is a partner, kicked off in the beginning of 2023.

Latest Updates

  • By Silvia Ghiretti

The Blue Economy Baltic Forum

The Blue Economy Baltic Forum is a new initiative aimed at strengthening cooperation in the Baltic Sea Region. By bringing together relevant stakeholders, showcasing successful initiatives and providing information on funding opportunities for innovative projects, the Forum will support the implementation of the EU Mission Restore our Oceans and Waters. 

  • By Lucy Hammond

Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”: The Mediterranean lighthouse in action

The European Commission, in close cooperation with the Italian government, the Sicily Region, the University of Palermo and with the support of the BlueMissionMed Co-ordination and Support Action, will organise the high-level event Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”: The Mediterranean lighthouse in action in Palermo on 30-31 May.

  • By Silvia Ghiretti

Informal Coffee Meeting on Mission Soil calls for proposals

Based on the results of the survey on the EU Mission calls, ERRIN is organising an informal coffee meeting on Wednesday 3 May from 10:00-12:00 to discuss the project proposal ideas.

  • By Lucy Hammond

"Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”: The Baltic North Sea lighthouse in action

On 25 – 26 April 2023, the European Commission, in close cooperation with the German Ministry of Education and Research and with the support of the BlueMissionBANOS Co-ordination and Support Action for the Baltic & North Sea, will organise the hybrid event Mission “Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030”: The Baltic and North Sea lighthouse in action.

  • By Heidi Johansson

Matchmaking event: Restore our waters – Baltic Sea Region perspective

A matchmaking event on the Horizon Europe Ocean and Waters Mission calls will be organised in Brussels between 17-18 April. This event offers pitching, networking and matchmaking opportunities for interested stakeholders.

  • By Heidi Johansson

Blue Economy WG: Challenges and opportunities in Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030

The Blue Economy Working Group invites members to its next meeting which will address the question: How to make the Mission Restore our Ocean and Waters by 2030 work? The aim is to create a discussion around the Mission implementation process between regional stakeholders from the different lighthouse basins involved in activities related to the Mission objectives and the Mission Secretariat. The meeting will take place online on 29 March between 9:00-10:30 CEST.