Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Biotechnological tools for assisting seagrass natural recovery in the Mediterranean Sea

Project description

Safeguarding the sea’s lungs

Mediterranean seagrass meadows are vital underwater ecosystems. They stabilise sediments, store carbon, and support marine biodiversity. However, they are also under threat from climate change and coastal development. Unfortunately, they are also difficult to restore once damaged. Supported by the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the SEACOVERY project tackles this challenge by exploring assisted recovery strategies to strengthen seagrass resilience. It combines genetic approaches, ecological techniques, and targeted communication efforts, bringing together leading experts in seagrass biology, evolution, and environmental stress. By building knowledge and raising awareness at community level, SEACOVERY aims to protect and preserve P. oceanica, and, with it, the health of Mediterranean coasts.

Objective

Current degradation of marine ecosystems, worsen by global change processes, have triggered scientific and public awareness for environmental conservation. That is the case of seagrass meadows, unique coastal habitats which provide a variety of ecosystem services, play essential roles in coastal ecology and biogeochemistry and are endangered by human development. Even though seagrass restoration might be locally helpful with some species, in the case of the iconic Mediterranean species Posidonia oceanica, conservation and recovery of the existing meadows is the most urgent topic to be addressed. However, there is a lack of knowledge regarding the active strategies which could be applied to enhance present meadow's tolerance and future resilience to environmental stressors. Through an interdisciplinary approach based on assisted genetic migration, active priming strategies, assisted ecological succession and science communication, SEACOVERY project will explore new insights into assisted recovery techniques and increase awareness in local communities. My experience in seagrass ecotoxicology and population dynamics will be complemented with the recognised expertise on assisted evolution and transcriptomic responses of Dr. Gabriele Procaccini (SZN, Italy), combined with the essential knowledge on seagrass physiological and ecological responses to environmental stressors of Dr. Lázaro Marín-Guirao (IEO-CSIC, Spain). The outreach of this research will be augmented thanks to the placement with the CSI Gaiola onlus, which will support science communication and education events. SEACOVERY will provide an urgently needed knowledge on assisted natural recovery of P. oceanica meadows, with the potential of being a cost-effective climate change mitigation strategy.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2024-PF-01

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

STAZIONE ZOOLOGICA ANTON DOHRN
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 242 054,10
Address
Villa Comunale
80121 Napoli
Italy

See on map

Region
Sud Campania Napoli
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

No data

Partners (2)

My booklet 0 0