Mr. Distante from ISASI – Istituto di Scienze Applicate e Sistemi Intelligenti (Italy), coordinator of the ROMEO project, together with Mr. Suciu from BEIA Cercetare (Romania), a project partner, attended the Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership 2026 Symposium in Bucharest, held under the theme “Full Sail Ahead Towards the Sustainable Blue Economy.”
The event provided a valuable opportunity to engage with European policymakers, researchers, and industry leaders, including European Commissioner Ekaterina Zaharieva and Andreea Strachinescu (DG MARE), as well as numerous stakeholders actively shaping the future of maritime sustainability and ocean protection.
As highlighted by Mr. Cosimo: “This was not only about our project, but about how ROMEO contributes to the broader European vision.”
Discussions at the symposium, ranging from the Black Sea regional dimension to challenges related to market uptake, underscored the increasing need for advanced, innovative monitoring solutions. The growing impact of microplastics represents a significant environmental and public health concern, while diatoms serve as sensitive bioindicators of ecosystem status. In this context, the ROMEO project aims to deliver real-time data to support a deeper understanding of both.