How can the knowledge and participatory approaches tested through INCORE-MED reach beyond the project’s pilot sites and support coastal communities across the Mediterranean?
This question was at the heart of the 4th INCORE-MED Partners and Steering Committee Meeting, held on 1–2 October 2026 in Venice, Italy. Ante Ivčević, PAP/RAC’s Programme Officer, contributed to discussions on project progress and, in particular, to the development of the INCORE-MED Toolbox, an activity for which PAP/RAC has a leading role within Work Package 4.
The first day provided an opportunity for partners to review progress across the project, including the implementation of the SWAP and DLab methodologies in the pilot areas, communication activities, participatory cartographies and the joint assessment process. The meeting also looked at the project’s links with the Interreg Euro-MED Natural Heritage Mission.
During the discussions, PAP/RAC highlighted its expectations for the Toolbox as an instrument that should go beyond compiling project results. The Toolbox should help translate the knowledge, methodologies and experience generated by INCORE-MED into practical and transferable resources, supporting the upscaling and amplification of project results.
The second day was entirely dedicated to the INCORE-MED Toolbox. PAP/RAC worked closely with eco-union and Tallinn University (TU), together with the other project partners, to further refine its objectives, structure, transferability strategy, contents and implementation roadmap. Led by TU, through four working groups, partners provided concrete input on what the Toolbox should contain and how it can best respond to the needs of its future users. Partners will now work on integrating these contributions into the Toolbox structure and further developing its content together with project partners.
This collaborative process will continue over the coming months. A dedicated working session is planned at PAP/RAC premises in Split at the end of January 2027, followed by further presentation and discussion of the Toolbox at the INCORE-MED conference in Athens in March 2027.
By bringing together lessons from the pilot activities and making them accessible and transferable, the Toolbox is expected to become one of INCORE-MED’s key instruments for ensuring that the project’s experience can be used beyond its pilot sites and contribute to more inclusive and climate-resilient coastal management across the Mediterranean.
