| September 20th, 2024 | News

The Black Sea NGO Network recently represented SOS-ZEROPOL2030 at the Black Sea Stakeholder Conference. Aleksandar Shivarov was invited to present at the event, co-organised by the European Commision, to talk about outcomes of our first Living Lab and the current state of PFAS pollution in the region.

Priorities for action from first Living Lab

SOS-ZEROPOL2030 featured in a plenary session on ‘Challenges and opportunities on the Black Sea’s path to sustainability and zero pollution’. Special attention was paid to the reduction of persistent chemicals such as PFAS, which are the focus of the Black Sea Living Lab. Aleksandar Shivarov, part of the Black Sea regional team, was invited as speaker at the conference. He presented the current state of PFAS pollution in the region and outlined priorities for action based on the outcomes of the first Living Lab.

Common Maritime Agenda for the Black Sea

The Black Sea Stakeholder Conference brings together representatives from different sectors, implementing marine projects in the wider seas basin. It also serves as a forum for discussing future policy directions under the Common Maritime Agenda for the Black Sea. This year’s edition was hosted by the Republic of Moldova in the capital Chișinău on 11 September 2024.

Our upcoming Living Lab is scheduled to take place in Athens led by our regional lead at MIO-ECSDE, and our case study lead on Tyre Wear Particles at SINTEF Ocean.

Aleksandar Shivarov (right) together with Ioana Chiulan (left) from the Black Sea SIERRA project and the moderator Thanos Smanis (center) from the Black Sea Assistance Mechanism (Photo credit: Georgia Anagnostaki, Common Maritime Agenda for the Black Sea)