In response to increasing public disenfranchisement from European institutions, Horizon Europe is underscoring the need for funded activities to be of a high societal impact and to be communicated to the public at large in the most clarion of ways. One way Horizon Europe is seeking to do this is through a mission-driven approach.
Missions need to address challenges considered as priorities by the European public – the agenda is now well and truly formulated by citizens.
In cognisance of today’s societal most compelling challenges, five highly relevant thematics have been chosen for this first round of Horizon Europe Missions. These include Cancer, Soil Health and Food, Climate-Neutral and Smart Cities, Adaptation to Climate Change and Healthy Oceans, Seas, Coastal and Inland Waters. 15 experts populate each Mission Board, having been selected following a rigorous and highly-competitive selection process, representing a panoply of individual backgrounds, experience and nationalities.
Prof. Alan Deidun, resident academic within the Department of Geosciences at the Faculty of Science and Malta’s Ocean Ambassador, is a member of the Oceans Mission Board, along with 14 other experts with diversified backgrounds, including former MEPs, research institute directors, former DG MARE Directors, former WWF Directors, fishers’ lobbyists, NGO representatives and even freshwater specialists (in view of the intrinsic connectivity between lakes, rivers and the ocean).
As a member of the Ocean Mission Board, Prof. Deidun contributed to a recently-published interim report titled: ‘Regenerating our Ocean and Waters by 2030’. Within this report, the Board proposes to regenerate the European ocean and waters by 2030, by reducing human pressures on marine and freshwater environments, restoring degraded ecosystems and sustainably harnessing the essential goods and services they provide. The report identifies the following 4 salient contemporary challenges to the Ocean:
(i) Climate change and acidification
(ii) Unsustainable human footprint (tourism, fisheries, pollution)
(iv) Inadequate governance
The full interim EU Ocean Mission Board can be downloaded online.
Citing verbatim the report’s preamble:
Protecting and restoring our ocean and waters is one of the defining endeavours of our time, as human existence and all life on this planet depend on them.
'Decades of pollution and harmful uses have severely degraded their health. Climate change and ocean acidification come as additional pressures, with more and more measurable impacts. By cleaning our marine and fresh waters, restoring their rich biodiversity and decarbonising our blue economy, the Mission aims at the full recovery and regeneration of European marine and freshwater ecosystems by 2030.’
The publication of this report marks another key step in the further integration of the EU Green Deal with the digital transformation proclaimed at European level, which provides a critical opportunity to kick-start the economy, while also being conducive to effective ocean action. Helping the required digital and policy-related transitions to a healthy planet within the next decade will be key for protecting and restoring the ocean.
In the coming weeks, the members of the Mission Boards will propose potential EU Missions which will be integrated in the Horizon Europe Framework Programme. The concept of Missions marks a new approach, and it was introduced to increase the impact of public investments in research and innovation activities, as well as to liaise better with citizens and raise the visibility of science, research and innovation. Until September 2020, European citizens and stakeholders will be consulted on the proposals for potential EU Missions, so as to ensure that they can make a real difference for society.