(PRIMA) AWESOME: Managing Water, Ecosystems and Food Across Sectors and Scales in the South Mediterranean

AWESOME: Managing Water, Ecosystems and Food Across Sectors and Scales in the South Mediterranean

The project is part of the PRIMA (Partnership for Research and Innovation in the Mediterranean Area) Programme supported by the European Union and involves several partners of excellence: Politecnico di Milano, Athens University of Economics and Business, Yezreel Valley College, University of Haifa, Agrimatic Farms, RWTH Aachen University and Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.

The main objective of AWESOME is developing a decision-analytic platform based on a multi-level, integrated WEF model to better understand multi-sectoral WEF tradeoffs and to capitalize on potential synergies, also exploring the interdependencies and feedbacks across ahierarchy of spatial scales, from the macroeconomic development of the Mediterranean region and national scale to regional planning at the river basin scale, down to the single farm. The platform will allow simulating the impacts of alternative WEF planning portfolios composed of regional policies, river-basin strategic planning options, and innovative technological solutions demonstrated at the local scale, to generate shared economic, environmental, and societal benefits.

OBJECTIVES

• A better understanding of trade-offs, synergies, and nested interdependencies across the WEF Nexus components at different spatial scales, from the whole Mediterranean region, through the river basins scale, to the farm scale
• A better characterization of opportunities and constraints to the implementation and successful uptake of multi-sectoral WEF portfolios aimed at improving agricultural and environmental sustainability, explicitly accounting for local stakeholders and global events/policies;
• Improved WEF portfolios aimed at increasing the resilience of the agricultural sector supported by a deep engagement with relevant stakeholders including farmers, local business representatives, public authorities, NGOs, policymakers, and citizens;
• Maximise the project’s impact by fostering the dissemination of knowledge and promoting dialogue, learning, and understanding between sectors, policymakers and stakeholders as well by supporting the acceleration and exploitation of project innovations throughout the Mediterannean region via partner agencies such as EIT Climate-KIC

Official website

Principal Investigator is Prof. Koundouri.Members of the team are: Prof. Athanasios Yannacopoulos, Dr. George Papagiannis , Lydia Stergiopoulou , Dr. Ebun Akinsete

• Start date 1 May 2020 – End date 31 October 2023
• Coordinated By Politecnico di Milano, Italy
• Partners 7
• Overall budget 1.795.726,00 €

Partners – AWESOME (awesome-prima.eu)

Press Release available at http://www.unsdsn.gr/awesome-project-officially-started

Workshops and events organized 

10/09/2020: AWESOME H2020 PRIMA Meeting

22/05/2020: Kick-off meeting H2020 PRIMA AWESOME project

For more information contact:

Prof. Phoebe Koundouri: https://www.aueb.gr/en/faculty_page/koundouri-phoebe