D 5.1_List of stakeholders and communication supports

This first deliverable of WP1 reports on the first list of stakeholders to be used to populate the AFRIMED Business Club (Table 1, Figure 1), the central design of the Business Club on the AFRIMED website (Figure 2), and the results of the first AFRIMED survey on partners and stakeholders expectations (Figure 3‐11).

Initial responses highlight the positivity of the stakeholders towards AFRIMED fulfilling its objectives and their expectations in AFRIMED:

•  producing highly relevant new knowledge on restoration techniques and practices, including new knowledge on factors for prioritizing areas for future restoration actions and factors compromising the health and restoration potential of macroalgal forests and ecosystem services.

• moving from delivering knowledge to applying research and innovation and to actually advancing restoration implementation (with currently planned within AFRIMED and future expected restoration actions, including transferability of know‐how to non‐EU states and enabling up‐scaling through the development of a road map to follow up projects).

• networking, promoting restoration and sustainably using our ocean, creating an all‐inclusive forum linking research, conservation and public and private sectors and specifically linking restoration and Blue growth by enhancing awareness within the blue economy sectors of the benefits of restoration