The second annual meeting of OCEAN CITIZEN took place in Barcelona, where partners gathered from January 14 to 15, 2025. The event was held at the Institut de Ciències del Mar (ICM), the fourth-largest research institute of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the largest dedicated to marine research. While last year’s meeting in Lecce was an opportunity to share the project’s first steps, this year brought a sense of momentum and focus as the project reached its halfway point.
The two-day event saw its highest in-person attendance to date (more than 70 persons), marking a significant milestone for the project. It was the perfect opportunity to review progress, discuss challenges, and align on the path forward as the project transitions into its implementation phase. It was also the moment to clarify the next two steps, the crucial ones: implementation and the monitoring program consensus protocols.
Progress and collaboration
After over a year since the last in-person meeting, all partners were looking forward to getting back together and hearing the latest updates from each work package. The wonderful conference room at the ICM was filled with anticipation and eagerness to work together.

Following the welcoming words from Sergio Rossi, the meeting kicked off with detailed presentations from each of the project’s work packages, offering a comprehensive overview of the project’s progress and recent developments. Despite challenges encountered along the way, the atmosphere was one of collaboration and shared purpose. “This is indeed a unique project” Sergio Rossi commented, “the one in which the efforts are focused mostly in one place, Tenerife, to create the tools to make a replicable protocol for ocean regeneration purposes”. All participants demonstrated their willingness to share their progress and support other tasks, share their expertise, and work together to identify solutions.
After the presentations, the focus shifted to even more collaborative discussions. In smaller groups, partners addressed specific aspects of the project, discussing the next steps and agreeing on procedures, roles, and contributions. The synergy was evident, and many researchers highlighted that never before had they participated in such a joint initiative.
Towards a holistic and replicable protocol for coastal restoration
Despite the diversity of profiles and backgrounds among the partners that make up OCEAN CITIZEN, there was a palpable sense of cohesion throughout, with everyone united in working toward a common goal. The second annual meeting highlighted that, at least within this project, interdisciplinarity and the diversity of countries are clear strengths in achieving shared objectives. Undoubtedly, this genuinely multidisciplinary and collaborative approach is what enables the project to aim for a holistic, scalable, and replicable protocol for coastal restoration and conservation. Following this second meeting, the consortium is one step closer to advancing our mission of ocean restoration.