DOORS-Developing Optimal and Open Research for the Black Sea

The overall objective of DOORS is to work with stakeholders to implement the SRIA for the Black Sea, support the successful implementation of Blue Growth and contribute to a healthy, productive and resilient Black Sea. To fulfil this overarching objective, DOORS will use three parallel work programmes System of Systems (SoS) for the Black Sea, a platform to visualise information from multiple data sources, covering all aspects of the physical, chemical, and biological parameters of the Black Sea. SoS will allow a holistic approach to the management of the Black Sea; Blue Growth Accelerator (BGA), which will enable identification of start-ups and entrepreneurs for innovation, provide professional support to unlock their potential, enhance the exploitation of knowledge and facilitate constructive exchange between scientists, entrepreneurs and politicians for Blue Growth development; Knowledge Transfer and Training (KTT), which will be based on existing collaborations between the different actors on science and policy, promote a culture of openness, share best practice and knowledge to address impacts, and engage stakeholders from the beginning of the project to develop trust and confidence.

The specific objectives are:

Objective 1: To create a harmonised set of methodologies for data acquisition. This will enable all the Black Sea coastal countries to use existing and new FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable) compliant data to identify and address the challenges arising from human pressures and climate change impacts, and collectively drive an interdisciplinary approach by delivering evidence-based knowledge and innovative solutions. This harmonised set of methodologies and data will inform identification of the appropriate policy interventions, support European policy framework implementation, and facilitate development and implementation of Blue Growth at the basin-scale. Objective 2: To integrate interdisciplinary scientific knowledge, in order to address the impacts of human-induced activities and climate change, as input needed to effectively implement policies in the Black Sea. To achieve this, DOORS will develop the System of Systems (SoS) for the Black Sea, a platform which builds on state-of-the-art of observation, modelling and data integration tools following user requirements across multiple disciplines. Objective 3: To facilitate ecosystem service potential and provide support for entrepreneurship. By addressing the region’s specific needs, DOORS will promote synergies and collaboration between researchers, businesses and policy. DOORS will deliver a Blue Growth Accelerator which -based on whole system understanding through the SoS- will highlight and promote opportunities for sustainable business development in blue economy sectors. It will bring together key partners, promote mentoring schemes to practically support growth and job creation. Objective 4: To bring the Black Sea Environment closer to society. DOORS will create mechanisms that enable education, support exchange and use of scientific knowledge between stakeholders and end-users, and provide the opportunity for stakeholder involvement in the development and delivery of key project outputs.