MEP&M project proposal aims toward solving multiple issues. First, coastal zone and marine environment protection is one of Montenegrin and Albanian (PC) Governments priorities. Also, this field is one of priorities toward EU accession process for all WBCs. Lack of adequate number of professionals in governmental institutions and blue economy sector companies dealing with issues in this area should be overcome through enhanced education and research at PC HEIs. Secondly, strengthening international competitiveness within EHEA and ERA are the main driving forces for PC HEIs. Thus, project’s activities will deliver next main results: developed and accredited innovative regional joint interdisciplinary MSc program (120 ECTS, 2-year duration) in field of Maritime Environmental Protection and Management (MEP&M) in English language at PC HEIs; enhanced human capacities in field of MEP&M and e-learning methodology through tailored trainings at PC HEIs; enhanced technical capacities of PC HEIs through installed new e-learning platform; increased networking among PC HEIs, governmental institutions, Blue economy sector companies and NGOs in order to act regionally to prevent and cope with consequences of global climate change and local/regional marine pollution.The project will have positive impact on strengthening human capacities in field of MEP&M at PCs, and wider, and increasing international competitiveness and visibility of the PC HEIs, as a result of the developed and started MSc program in MEP&M in English and enhanced human and technical capacities.

Being one of the main actions of the EU Biodiversity Strategy 2030, the European Biodiversity Partnership (Biodiversa+) will coordinate research programmes between EU and its Member States and Associated Countries, mobilising environmental authorities as key partners for implementing biodiversity research and innovation, along with ministries of research, funding organisations, and environmental protection agencies (75 organisations from 37 countries). Biodiversa+ has five overarching objectives: (1) improve monitoring of biodiversity and ecosystem services across Europe (status and trends); (2) generate actionable knowledge to tackle the direct and indirect drivers of biodiversity loss; (3) expand and improve the evidence base, and accelerate the development and wide deployment of NbS to meet societal challenges across Europe; (4) make the business case for the conservation and restoration of biodiversity; and (5) ensure efficient science-based support for biodiversity policy making in Europe. Biodiversa+ will meet these objectives by (i) setting up a pan-European network of harmonized monitoring schemes, building on existing national/regional monitoring schemes, creating capacity for setting up new schemes, and feeding into the EC Knowledge Center for Biodiversity; (ii) coordinating research programmes between the EU and its Member States and associated countries, thereby ensuring the long-term pan-European research agenda is co-created and implemented; (iii) contributing science-based methodologies to account for and possibly value ecosystem services and the natural capital, and to assess the dependency and impact of businesses on biodiversity and (iv) better linking of R&I programmes to the policy arena, providing greater input to policy making and improving the assessment of policy efficiency. Doing so, Biodiversa+ will help ensure that, by 2030, nature in Europe is back on a path of recovery, and by 2050 people are living in harmony with Nature.