Accélérateur d’Innovation Transfrontalier pour la Gestion et la Valorisation du Crabe Bleu dans une Approche Circulaire
Programme: Interreg NEXT Italia – Tunisia 21-27
Duration: 15/05/2025 – 15/05/2028
Part of the Interreg NEXT Italy-Tunisia 2021-2027 program, the CercleBleu project addresses the challenges posed by the spread of the blue crab in the Mediterranean. The initiative seeks to transform this ecological threat into an economic opportunity by promoting a circular economy model that integrates fishing, processing, and marketing processes between Sicily and Tunisia. By strengthening Open Science (IOS), the project aims to innovate local production chains while ensuring environmental sustainability.
Objectives
The project aims to implement an integrated cross-border approach for managing the blue crab resource, mitigating its impact on ecosystems and leveraging its industrial potential.
To achieve these goals, the initiative focuses on the following key points:
- Open science promotion: strengthening cross-border scientific collaboration to develop shared solutions for invasive species management;
- Fishery chain transformation: restructuring blue crab fishing and marketing processes to optimize operational efficiency and commercial value;
- Circular economy models: implementing strategies for waste and biomass recovery and valorization, reducing the environmental footprint of fishing activities;
- Cross-border cooperation: establishing an innovation ecosystem between Italy and Tunisia for the joint management of shared marine resources;
- Governance and technical support: ensuring rigorous financial and administrative monitoring to maintain intervention effectiveness and compliance with European cooperation protocols.
Coordinator: Institut National des Sciences et Technologies de la Mer (INSTM), Tunisia
SZN Principal Investigator: Maria Cristina Mangano, Carmen Rizzo
Partners:
- Consorzio Nazionale Interuniversitario per le Scienze del Mare (CONISMA), Italia
- Centre de Recherche en Numérique de Sfax (CRNS), Tunisia
- Stazione Zoologica Anton Dohrn (SZN), Italia
- Distretto della Pesca e Crescita Blu (COSVAP), Italia
- Università di Cartagine. Italia
