In the first week of March, the ARTEMIS partnership gathered in Santa Teresa Gallura, Sardinia, for two days of discussions focused on the progress achieved so far, the next steps of the project, and a dedicated training session on how to better communicate the value of seagrass ecosystems to the public.
During the first day, the meeting started with institutional welcoming by the Director of the Marine Protected Area Capo Testa Punta Falcone -Santa Teresa Gallura (where the Sardinian pilot site is located), followed by a presentation of the Interreg Euro-MED joint Secretariat Christoph Maier and a presentation of the Interreg Euro-MED Natural Heritage Mission representative in Sardinia Emanuela Manca.
During the first day, partners reviewed the progress made across the project over the past months. Particular attention was given to the successful completion of restoration activities for Posidonia oceanica in two pilot sites. A total of 1,300 cuttings were planted in Greece and 2,000 in Italy, and the first monitoring and assessment results indicate a positive response of the transplanted seagrass.
Partners also aligned on the ongoing development of seagrass credit guidelines, led by project partner Ecoacsa. The discussion focused on how this guidance can be translated into practical recommendations that can support organisations and practitioners interested in advancing seagrass restoration and nature-based investment mechanisms.
In addition, policy recommendations developed by The Green Tank were presented, aiming to strengthen the institutional framework for seagrass protection and to activate financial and economic tools capable of scaling up Posidonia oceanica restoration efforts across the Mediterranean.
Plan Bleu also shared updates on the development of an interactive online platform mapping past, ongoing, and future seagrass restoration initiatives across the region. The platform will also include detailed data from ARTEMIS restoration activities, contributing to greater transparency and knowledge sharing among practitioners and stakeholders.
The second day began with a field visit to Valle della Luna and Capo Testa, a striking coastal landscape overlooking the Marine Protected Area of Capo Testa Punta Falcone. It is here that the MEDSEA team, in collaboration with the MPA authority, recently completed the underwater transplantation of 2,000 Posidonia oceanica cuttings.
Standing along the rugged coastline of Capo Testa, partners looked out toward the waters of the MPA, beneath which the newly transplanted Posidonia oceanica meadows are slowly taking root. Though hidden from sight, the restoration taking place below the surface served as a powerful reminder of the collective effort behind the project. In that quiet moment, the landscape itself reflected the shared commitment of the ten ARTEMIS partners working to safeguard Mediterranean seagrass ecosystems through science, restoration, policy development, and innovative financial approaches.
The meeting also featured a Peer Learning Session, this time focusing on communication. Led by international sustainability and communications expert Thomas Kolster, the session explored how environmental initiatives can better connect with people’s everyday realities in order to gain stronger support from businesses, institutions, and local communities.
Through an interactive workshop, partners were encouraged to rethink how seagrass ecosystems are communicated, experimenting with new storytelling approaches capable of bringing the importance of seagrass restoration to a broader audience.
