We were honoured to be part of the new BCThubs Horizon Europe consortium kick-off meeting, held at Divani Palace Hotel in Larisa, Greece on the 7th of February 2023.

We welcomed the Governor of Region of Thessaly during the morning session, together with EU representatives who presented the financial and administrative guidelines for the smooth implementation of the project, while a presentation was made regarding policy aspects of the Excellence Hubs. 

The afternoon session included an overall project presentation by the Project Coordinator, brief consortium partners’ individual presentations, and presentations of the Work Packages (WPs) by the responsible partner for each one of them.

This meeting was a great opportunity to meet all partners in person and draw the path for the steps forward.

What is BCTHubs ? 

Blue Culture Technology Excellence Hubs in EU Widening Member States

BCThubs (Blue Culture Technologies) is a new field introduced in this project and relates to innovative technologies developed to support the Underwater Cultural Heritage (UWCH). UWCH consists of millions of shipwrecks, aircrafts, submerged settlements and ports lying in oceans. 3 million shipwrecks are hosted at ocean floors worldwide, providing evidence of humanities past. There is still unknown scientific knowledge and untapped potential since only 19% of the ocean is explored. BCThubs will directly have impact on different European strategies defining a state-of-the-art approach to support the UWCH. 

What is our role in BCTHubs ? 

• Detailed mapping of the existing quadruple helix stakeholders 
• Developing the Maltese hub ecosystem 
• Upskilling stakeholders of each hub on aspects related to BCT 
• Networking through participation in common events 
• Joint investment strategy and financing plans 
• Sustainability analysis 

Stay tuned for further news!