Research Directions:
Marine biodiversity
Ecology and ecosystem management
Description:
ROWER is a Horizon Europe–funded project addressing the urgent loss of marine and freshwater biodiversity and ecosystem degradation across Europe. Its core aim is to restore and protect aquatic ecosystems while supporting the blue economy and human well being. ROWER develops and demonstrates scalable, measurable restoration solutions for marine, coastal, estuarine, and riparian ecosystems. It applies a holistic, place based and people centred approach, combining ecological restoration with governance, economic evaluation, and stakeholder participation. The project supports protection and restoration across 13 Case Study Areas, covering over 5,000 km² of ecosystems, using active (replanting, restocking) and passive (pressure removal, strict protection) measures tailored to site-specific ecological potential. It aims to deliver a European Blueprint, Digital Twin decision-support platform, and Scalability Plan enabling scenario testing and replicable restoration governance across regions. It will also enable open science and societal uptake through FAIR data, citizen science, community engagement, and alignment with EOSC and EMODnet infrastructures.