INSPIRE proudly participated in the Mission Ocean & Waters Forum 2025 and exhibition, held in Brussels during the European Ocean Days, 3-7 March 2025. As a key contributor to the Restore our Ocean and Waters mission, the project showcased its innovative work towards preventing and eliminating pollution of our ocean, seas and waters.
The Forum brought together a diverse community of researchers, policymakers, and stakeholders to share progress, forge new partnerships, and reinforce collective action for Europe’s ocean and freshwater systems. INSPIRE stood out for its commitment to science-based, cross-sectoral collaboration and actionable data.
Our project was represented by Gert Everaert (VLIZ), coordinator of the INSPIRE project and partners VITO, University of Maribor, 123 Zero and Mold. VITO demonstrated at the exhibition the DETECTION of plastics on riverbanks of the Scheldt with drones and AI, Mold showed the installation of the Cleaning Barrier for plastic COLLECTION in the Po river and 123Zero their plastic free water less cosmetics which were distributed and tested at the EXIT music festival in July 2024 to raise awareness on plastics and PREVENTION. The University of Maribor showed the results of a Life Cycle Analysis of the 123Zero solution.
Gert Everaert presented the INSPIRE project status in the plenary session and highlighted some of the INSPIRE outcomes such as
- Riverine Litter Database (RLDB) currently comprising data from +600 publications, with +25,000 observations
- Monitoring and analysis protocols providing stepwise guidance on sampling techniques, analytical procedures and quality assurance
- Protocols for Environmental Impact Assessment
- Life Cycle Assessments
With continued momentum and growing collaboration, INSPIRE remains dedicated to delivering transformative solutions that support healthy and resilient waters across the continent.
