SoS2LearnDBS
Meet the Team
Together, We Can Make It Flow
United by a common mission to drive communities into leading the wave of restoration in the Danube River Basin and the Black Sea region.
INOVA+ is a leading Portuguese company in managing international projects within the fields of innovation, education, training, and research. With 27 years of experience, the company employs over 120 consultants across various offices in Portugal, Brussels, Heidelberg, and Warsaw. INOVA+ is a major player in EU-funded projects, coordinating more than 40, and has a strong focus on areas like pedagogical development, digital skills, green skills, and soft skills. INOVA+ provides a wide range of services, including project management, proposal writing, research, training program development, and event planning. It is also a member of several European networks and has coordinated more than 100 European projects, fostering collaboration across research centers, universities, municipalities, and businesses.
Steinbeis Europa Zentrum / Steinbeis 2i GmbH (SEZ) contributes its 35 years of experience in innovation consulting and the implementation of European research projects to SoS2LearnDBS. SEZ locally supports enterprises on behalf of the Ministry of Economic Affairs, Labour and Tourism of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Furthermore, as the coordinator of the Working Group Innovation and Technology Transfer of the EUSDR Priority Area 8, SEZ supports the competitiveness of enterprises in the Danube Region. In this context, SEZ initiated the Danube Transfer Centre (DTC) Network, an SME support network with DTC partners in 11 EUSDR countries. Well connected across Europe, especially in the Danube Region, SEZ looks forward to contributing to communication and exploitation activities of SoS2LearnDBS to maximise the project’s impact. In addition, SEZ will ensure integration with EU initiatives for the restoration of oceans, seas, and waters during the project implementation, ensuring complementarity and the utilisation of previous project results within the Mission.
The Association of Danube River Municipalities “Danube” (ADRM “Danube”) is a non-profit non-governmental organization of municipal authorities in the Danube region in Bulgaria (the first regional association in Bulgaria). Founded in 1993, it currently has 35 member municipalities, with a population of approximately 800,000.
ADRM aims at amplifying the voices of its member municipalities, while serving as a focal point for cooperation between stakeholders in various fields. It pools resources in cross-border and transnational partnerships to unlock the potential of the Bulgarian Danube region.
Founded in 1919, the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Naval Architecture at the University of Zagreb (FSB UNIZG) is Croatia’s leading institution in mechanical, naval, aeronautical, mechatronics, and robotics engineering. With around 500 staff and over 2,500 students, the Faculty combines strong theoretical education with extensive practical experience through 54 laboratories and industry collaboration. FSB UNIZG offers undergraduate, graduate, and doctoral programs that prepare students for careers in advanced engineering and research, while maintaining strong ties with industry and international partners. Through its Center for Technology Transfer, the Faculty actively promotes innovation and sustainable development.
The National Institute for Marine Geology and Geoecology – GeoEcoMar is a leading Romanian public R&D institute, established in 1993 under the Ministry of Education and Research, with a scientific focus on the integrated study of river – sea systems, particularly the Danube River – Danube Delta – Black Sea macro-system.
GeoEcoMar combines fundamental and applied research with strong capacities in field investigations (sampling and in-situ measurements), modelling, and environmental assessment, supporting evidence-based policies and sustainable management across the Lower Danube – Delta – Black Sea continuum.
The institute coordinates the ESFRI research infrastructure DANUBIUS-RI and has contributed to the development and promotion of the Black Sea Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA), with extensive experience in EU projects (FP, H2020, Horizon Europe, Interreg) and stakeholder-oriented training and knowledge transfer.
The Danube Delta National Institute for Research and Development (DDNI) was established in 1970 and its main objective is conducting fundamental and applied research for scientific support of the management of the Danube Delta Biosphere Reserve (DDBR) and other wetland areas of national and international interest, with particular focus on biodiversity conservation and sustainable use.
BOKU is one of the best Life Sciences universities in Europe, distinguished by its holistic approach to research and teaching. The Institute of Hydraulic Engineering and River Research (IWAH) under the direction of Univ.Prof. Dipl.-Ing. Dr. Helmut Habersack focuses on integral hydraulic engineering, with the core elements: water use – water protection – protection from the water. These include research areas and expertise in renewable energy with sustainable hydropower, integrated flood risk management, (eco-) hydraulics, river research and hydraulic engineering, with an emphasis on sediment management and river morphology, river restoration as well as waterway infrastructure for inland navigation.
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia (CCIS) is a legally‑established organisation uniting Serbia’s economy across sectors and regions, with a 168‑year tradition. It serves business enterprises in agriculture, industry and services, organised into 18 branch associations and supported via 16 regional chambers plus one in the capital. Using its foreign representations in key European partner countries, CCIS helps domestic firms internationalise and connect globally. CCIS represents members in law‑making and regulation, fosters economic cooperation abroad, offers information‑analytical support, promotes exports and integration into global supply chains. It bridges business and science to promote application of modern technologies and knowledge in production and operations. CCIS operates via its bodies in which businesspeople participate, with all members’ rights and obligations defined by law and internal regulations.
The team is based in the Department of Sociology, University of Barcelona. It has coordinated several RTD from EU projects, among which the FP6 Integrated Project INCLUD-ED (Strategies for Inclusion and Social Cohesion in Europe from Education). Besides the almost 80 paper publications INCLUD-ED achieved extraordinary political and social impact, with some of its contributions having been translated into several European recommendations, EU Parliament resolutions, and national legislations. The UB team also coordinated the FP7 project IMPACT-EV: Evaluating the impact and outcomes of EU SSH research, which established the indicators that are evaluating the social impact of European projects, the H2020 ALLINTERACT project promoting citizen engagement and co-creation in gender and educational research and the Horizon REVERS-ED: Trends in Educational Inequalities over time and successful interventions that contribute to reversing inequalities.
VSC DA is a public non-profit institution established by the Vukovar-Srijem County as regional authority and the regional coordinator of the county’s economic and social development operating in Eastern Croatia. In accordance with the Law on Regional Development, VSC DA provides professional assistance in the preparation and implementation of incentive programmes and development of EU and national projects to public law bodies and public institutions from the area of the county, prepares the County Development Strategy and other strategic and development documents for the area of the county and their implementation documents. VSC DA is an active participant in the preparation of the Smart Specialization Strategy of the Republic of Croatia until 2029. VSC DA has the longterm experience in regional policy making, development and support of business environment, cooperation with local and regional authorities, as well as national and international level, and has established a wide range of contact in all sectors. Additionally, is a member of Danube Transfer Centre Network and is the leader of the consortium and coordinator of the activities of the Digital Innovation Hub DIH PANNONIA.
The Municipality of Budapest is the local government of the capital of Hungary. The team working on the project is part of the Climate Adaptation Unit in the Department of Climate and Environment and is committed to achieving sustainable rainwater management and combating heat in the city.
The International Association for Danube Research (IAD) was founded in 1956 and is the longest existing international scientific network in the Danube Region. IAD is an Association according to Austrian law with the goal of promoting and coordinating activities in the fields of limnology, water management, water protection and sustainable development in the Danube River basin.
IAD has Expert Groups in 12 topics covering major ecological and management fields: Water Quality, Biotic Processes, Microbiology, Phytoplankton & Phytobenthos, Macrophytes, Floodplain Ecology, LTSER & Environmental History, Fish Biology & Fishery, Invasive Alien Species, Ecotoxicology, Delta/Fore-Delta, and Sustainable Development & Public Participation. Since 1998, IAD has a permanent observer status at the International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River.
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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 the European Climate, Infrastructure and Environment Executive Agency. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. (Project No 101217667).
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