Date: 9 – 10 May 2024
Place: Varna, Bulgaria
Format: online|offline
The event aims to offer a framework for B2B, B2G, B2C collaborations by facilitating the exchange of Blue Business ideas, best practices and knowledge in order to identify new directions to be followed for conceiving successful entrepreneurial activities. The event is intended to offer a platform for dialogue and exchange of Blue Business proposal ideas between entrepreneurs, innovative companies, start-ups and stakeholders as Business Associations, Chambers of Commerce, Universities, Professional Business Consultants, Local Authorities, Innovation Clusters and other similar.
Targeted audience At the event, there will be invited entrepreneurs, representatives of innovative companies, start-ups and stakeholders as Business Associations, Chambers of Commerce, Universities, Professional Business Consultants, Local Authorities, Innovation Clusters and other similar.
May 9
Official Opening
– Representatives of Varna Region: Varna District / Varna Municipality, blue economy stakeholders
– Ilze Atanasova, Marine Cluster Bulgaria
– Prof. Eden MAMUT, 4BIZ Project Coordinator
– DBAN project
Keynotes:
Representatives of the associated partners:
BSEC – topic tbc Best Practices from other Sea Basins, etc.
CPMR – topic tbc –
Other possible topics, include synergies with BSAM CMA and SRIA
Preliminary agenda
- Business and Investment opportunities in the Black Sea Region
- Pitching session of innovative ideas Presentation Potential investors (incl. Blue Invest, Fund of Funds, VCs)
- Accelerators and Business Support Initiatives, focused blue economy
- Funding opportunities , programmes and initiatives for support of the Blue economy
- Success Stories for support of internationalization (for example from Enterprise Europe Network)
May 10, 4BIZ services for the future
10.00 – 12.00 “Co-creation workshop”: Facilitated discussion among the participants – stakeholders from the business, academia and support organisations, with the involvement of students and young entrepreneurs, on an action plan how to use 4 BIZ methodology framework after the project and to
continue to provide 4BIZ services, targeted at start-up companies in the blue economy sectors and young entrepreneurs
! More information will bee soon
Draft Concept for 4BIZ Business Forum in Varna, 9 – 10 May 2024.pdf
Background
The Common Maritime Agenda (CMA) for the Black Sea is a sea basin initiative to enhance regional cooperation for achieving a sustainable Blue Economy in the Black Sea. It is developed in the broader framework of the Black Sea Synergy.
The CMA for the Black Sea recognises the need for coordinated approach to address common maritime and blue economy challenges. It is the first initiative of its kind in the region, resulting from a bottom-up process initiated by the countries involved and backed by the European Commission. CMA for the Black Sea is a unique cooperation framework for the Blue Economy, reinforcing regional dialogue between participating countries and stakeholders to jointly address the challenges and opportunities of blue economy sectors in the area, ensuring environmental sustainability while fostering growth and promoting blue economy projects. The CMA is complemented by its scientific pillar, the Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda for the Black Sea (SRIA), that provides valuable inputs for science-based decision-making. With the CMA, the Black Sea region joins the rest of the EU sea basins initiatives in setting a basin-wide initiative for more sustainable, economic growth based on the sustainable use of maritime and marine sectors. As part of the initiatives that are willing to support and promote Sustainable Development in the Black Sea area under the frame of the Common Maritime Agenda for the Black Sea, in the EMFAF 2021 Call, CINEA selected for funding the 4BIZ Project.
The 4BIZ – Boosting Black Sea Blue Biz project aims to develop a collaboration framework that will bring together blue economy stakeholders in EU and eligible non-EU Black Sea countries to identify and tackle local capacity building needs to boost innovation, digitalization and investment in the Black Sea blue economy with the main focus on fisheries and aquaculture, coastal and maritime tourism and maritime transport.
The project is coordinated by the Black Sea Universities Network and brings together 9 partners directly involved in the implementation Consortium and 17 associated partners from Romania, Ukraine, Bulgaria, Turkey, Georgia, Greece and France, including regional development agencies, chambers of commerce, innovative clusters, universities and support organizations. The project is funded by the European Commission, through the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency, under the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) program, and has a duration of 24 months.
*This Project has received funding from the European Union’s European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF) under Grant Agreement 101077576.
**Funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or CINEA. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
