In this newsletter we are bringing you the latest PHAROS news as well as an important announcement.

WEBINAR SERIES STARTS

As part of PHAROS’ Citizen Litter Entrepreneur program, Impact Hub Athens and ICoRSA are launching “Meet the Oceanpreneur”: an engaging 8-part webinar series running from September 2025 to November 2026. Each session will tackle a key topic: ranging from plastic pollution to sustainable tourism, aligned with EU priorities and co-curated with a fellow Mission Ocean project, whose representative will moderate the discussion.

The first webinar on the list is Framing the Challenge: The State of the Ocean Economy scheduled for

September 25th, 2025 | 11:00 CET | 50 minutes 

Key topics include:

• Who owns and stewards the ocean commons?

• Which systems must be protected, reimagined, or left behind?

• How can data, technology, and civic engagement drive ocean regeneration?

WHO IT’S FOR

Innovators, researchers, and changemakers across the blue economy, startups, academics, students, local authorities, policymakers, private sector leaders, educators, and civil society.

Innovative concepts such as digital ocean twins, blue finance, citizen science, and circular economy solutions will be introduced to establish a shared foundation for the sessions to follow.

UPCOMING WEBINARS AT A GLANCE

Across eight sessions, Meet the Oceanpreneur explores the key challenges and bold opportunities shaping a sustainable blue economy:

• Framing the Challenge: The State of the Ocean Economy – September 2025

• Eyes on the Ocean: Tracking Marine Litter and Plastic Pollution – November 2025

• From Waste to Worth: (Micro)plastics Reduction & Valorisation – January 2026

• Cleaner Seas Begin on Land: Prevention, Zero Waste & Community Action – March 2026

• Blue Growth, Green Balance: Sustainable Aquaculture & Biodiversity -May 2026

• Greening the Gateway: Smart Ports & Blue Logistics – July 2026

• Blue Horizons: Eco-Tourism for Ocean Protection – September 2026

• Scaling Impact: The Ocean Sustainability Movement in Action – November 2026

PHAROS to Organise Annual General Meeting and Stakeholder Mega Event Beginning 2026

More information in the following months on our website

PHAROS on Radio: Featured on El Espejo Canario

On Friday, 25 July 2025, PHAROS Project Manager Pablo Reche Garcia joined the radio magazine El Espejo Canario as a guest speaker. The programme, which aired from 8:00 to 11:30, covered a range of topics relevant to the Canary Islands community, including the PHAROS project.

You can listen to the episode in Spanish here, with Pablo Reche Garcia’s segment starting at 161:20 minute mark.

Ocean Economy in Europe’s Atlantic and Arctic: Navigating Toward Powerful Regenerative Blue Futures

The vast expanse of Europe’s Atlantic and Arctic waters stands at a critical point. These marine regions, which collectively encompass over 27.6 million square kilometers of the EU’s exclusive economic zones, face unprecedented challenges from climate change, pollution, and fragmented governance systems. Yet within these challenges lies an extraordinary opportunity to reimagine our relationship with the ocean, transforming from exploitation to regeneration, from fragmented management to integrated stewardship.

A Blue Economy in Transition

Europe’s blue economy has demonstrated remarkable resilience and growth, employing 4.82 million people and generating nearly €890 billion in turnover as of 2022, a 29% increase from the previous year. The Atlantic Maritime Strategy area alone accounts for more than one-third of the EU’s blue economy gross added value. However, this economic success story is shadowed by mounting environmental pressures that threaten the very foundation upon which these industries depend.

The European Environment Agency’s latest assessments reveal a sobering reality: only 37% of Europe’s surface water bodies achieve ‘good’ or ‘high’ ecological status, while a mere 29% meet ‘good’ chemical status standards. In the rapidly changing Arctic, warming occurs at nearly four times the global average, fundamentally altering marine ecosystems and creating new economic opportunities while simultaneously threatening traditional ways of life.

Climate Impacts and Critical Thresholds

The marine waters of the Atlantic and Arctic are experiencing what scientists call “climate change’s deadly trio”: ocean acidification, sea warming, and deoxygenation. Recent research indicates that climate change may account for up to half of the combined impacts on marine ecosystems. The Arctic Ocean, in particular, faces a cascade of interconnected changes: sea ice loss, permafrost thawing, and ecosystem shifts that could trigger irreversible tipping points.

Semi-enclosed seas like the Baltic and parts of the North Atlantic are particularly vulnerable, with shallow coastal areas experiencing disproportionate impacts from rising temperatures and changing ocean chemistry. The European Marine Climate Change Index shows that vulnerability is especially high in parts of the Baltic Sea, the Adriatic Sea, and coastal regions of the North-east Atlantic.

Who Stewards the Ocean Commons?

One of the most pressing questions facing Europe’s marine regions is who owns and governs the vast ocean commons. The Atlantic and Arctic present a complex governance landscape characterized by what experts term “polycentric fragmentation”. The Arctic Ocean governance involves five coastal states (Canada, Denmark via Greenland, Norway, Russia, and the United States), alongside various international bodies and agreements.

Unlike the Antarctic, the Arctic lacks a comprehensive international treaty, instead relying on a complex suite of domestic laws, international treaties, and customary international law. The European Union, while not an Arctic Ocean coastal state, exercises significant influence through flag state, port state, and market state capacities.

Protect, Reimagine, or Abandon?

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are highly important for ocean conservation efforts. The Arctic Council’s Framework for a Pan-Arctic Network of Marine Protected Areas calls for ecologically functional MPA networks that protect the diversity of genes, species, populations, habitats, and ecosystems. Most Arctic states have established some MPAs but remain in early stages of creating connected, functional networks.

The Central Arctic Ocean Fisheries Agreement exemplifies proactive protection, requiring ten parties to abstain from fishing in Arctic high seas until sustainable practices can be established. Similarly, the High Seas Treaty, once ratified by 60 countries, will provide coordinated management for international waters.

Systems That Must Be Reimagined

Traditional blue economy sectors require fundamental transformation to align with climate neutrality and circular economy principles. The EU’s Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership envisions a “just and inclusive transition to a regenerative, resilient, and sustainable blue economy” by 2030.

Aquaculture presents a prime example of necessary reimagining. Integrated Multi-Trophic Aquaculture (IMTA) systems, as demonstrated by the PHAROS project in Ireland and Gran Canaria, show how salmon farming can be combined with macroalgae cultivation to reduce environmental impact while increasing biodiversity and economic returns.

Systems That Must Be Left Behind

Certain practices and approaches prove incompatible with ocean health and must be abandoned. These include:

• Linear economic models that extract, use, and dispose without considering regenerative cycles

• Sectoral silos in governance that ignore ecosystem interconnections

• Short-term profit maximization that depletes marine resources faster than they can regenerate

• Exclusionary decision-making that fails to engage coastal communities and Indigenous peoples
  

Innovation Driving Ocean Regeneration

Digital Ocean Twins: Virtual Laboratories for Real Solutions

The European Digital Twin of the Ocean (EU DTO) represents a revolutionary approach to marine management. Launched with €15 million annually in EU investment, this AI-powered platform integrates real-time and historical ocean data to simulate “what-if” scenarios. By 2024, the first pre-operational platform demonstrated capabilities ranging from Sargassum drift forecasting to turtle movement simulation.

The EU DTO enables policymakers to model complex scenarios: “What if I reduce pollution in a given river, what would be the impact on the ocean?” These predictive capabilities are already improving ocean current prediction accuracy by more than 20%, setting new benchmarks for marine forecasting while using a fraction of traditional supercomputer energy.

BECOME A MEMBER OF PHAROS

No matter where you are in Europe, you too can become a member, for free! Help us restore the oceans.

EU Invests €116 Million in 13 Ocean Projects

The European Union has allocated €116 million to fund 13 ocean-related projects under the EU Mission Ocean and Waters initiative. These projects span various sea basins, including the Black Sea, Danube River, Baltic and North Sea, Mediterranean Sea, and Atlantic and Arctic regions. The focus is on enhancing marine protection, advancing sustainable fisheries, and promoting the decarbonization of the maritime sector. This investment underscores the EU’s commitment to preserving marine ecosystems and supporting the blue economy.

Marine Industry Reacts to EU–US Tariff Deal

On July 27, 2025, EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and US President Donald Trump announced a new tariff agreement, establishing a 15% baseline tariff on European imports to the US, with exemptions for key industries. In return, the EU agreed to suspend its previously announced 30% retaliatory tariffs on American products, including recreational vessels. The European Boating Industry (EBI) expressed concerns that the new tariffs could result in an unbalanced trade relationship between the EU and the US, potentially reducing EU industry competitiveness. The EBI emphasized the importance of stability and predictability in trade relations to sustain the recreational boating sector.