Appel à manifestations d’intérêt Création de la communauté de pratiques de l’Observatoire de l’économie bleue de l’UE Retour vers les opportunités

Appel à manifestations d’intérêt
Création de la communauté de pratiques de l’Observatoire de l’économie bleue de l’UE

Background

The EU Blue Economy Observatory (BEO), managed by Directorate-General for Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (DG MARE) and the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Commission, supports evidence-based policy and decision making for the sustainable development of the EU blue economy. To strengthen the Observatory’s capacity to gather, process and analyse socio-economic data – and to improve the coverage, timeliness and granularity of indicators across established and emerging maritime sectors – the BEO intends to establish a Community of Practice (CoP) of experts and stakeholders. The CoP will provide advice, review methodologies, identify data gaps and priorities for thematic analysis, and facilitate synergies across initiatives. In doing so, the CoP will work closely with and provide advice to the Steering Committee of the BEO; a body made up of representatives of several services and agencies of the European Commission, who contribute to defining priorities, objectives and expectations of the BEO.

Objectives of the Community of Practice

The CoP will: Advise the EU BEO Steering Committee on improvements to the collection, processing and harmonisation of socio-economic data for the EU blue economy. Help identify high-priority thematic and sectoral studies and methodologies to be undertaken by the BEO. Promote synergies and avoid duplication with EU and national initiatives and data providers. Contribute expertise on emerging sectors – such as marine renewable energy, blue biotechnology, etc. for which there are comparatively fewer data available – coastal protection, ocean observation, and other under-documented areas. Support dissemination and stakeholder engagement activities in relation to BEO outputs. Contribute to the development of the forthcoming “EU Ocean Pact dashboard” that will be used to track progress against the objectives of the Ocean Pact.

Scope and expected activities

Members of the CoP will be expected to:

• Participate in periodic plenary (mostly virtual) meetings.
• Join and actively contribute to sectoral and/or thematic working groups (such as, for instance, Methodologies & sources; Social & economic Indicators; Environmental indicators; Funding & innovation), as relevant to their expertise.
• Review draft methodologies, data inventories and thematic studies, suggestions for reports and analysis proposals, and provide written feedback when requested.
• Share knowledge, good practices, datasets (where permissible), and tools, and facilitate links with relevant national or sectoral initiatives.
• Support outreach and dissemination of BEO work within their networks.

Participation is voluntary and not remunerated.

Work will mostly be carried out online with occasional events.

If you want to read more on why a Community of Practice has emerged as a strong need for the EU Blue Economy Observatory, you can view a concept note.

Eligibility and who should apply

Applications will be welcome from individuals or organisations with demonstrable expertise and active involvement in fields relevant to the blue economy, including but not limited to:

• Member States’ public representatives (in charge of blue economy-related policies), and national statistical authorities, offices or institutes;
• Academia and research centres and institutes;
• Industry associations and private sector actors;
• International organisations and intergovernmental bodies;
• NGOs and civil society organisations;
• Technology providers, data platforms and consultancy experts.

Applications are particularly encouraged from candidates able to demonstrate experience in socio-economic data collection, statistics, methodology development, sectoral analysis, data standardisation/interoperability, or related policy support.

The CoP aims for balanced representation across geography, sectoral expertise, public/private and academic stakeholders, and gender.

Selection principles and criteria

DG MARE and the JRC will screen applications, and the Steering Committee of the EU Blue Economy Observatory will endorse the composition of the CoP. Selection will be guided by the following non-exhaustive criteria: Mandatory checks Completeness of application (all requested fields supplied). Relevance of the applicant’s profile to the CoP objectives, which will be assessed according to the following criteria: Expertise and technical excellence (45%): demonstrable experience in socio-economic data, statistics, methods, sectoral knowledge and/or relevant projects/publications. Relevance to CoP objectives (30%): how the applicant’s expertise would contribute to the BEO’s priorities (data quality, emerging sectors, methodologies). Stakeholder balance and network value (10%): potential to connect the CoP with national initiatives, industry, research networks or data sources. Geographical and gender balance (15%): contribution to overall diversity of the CoP. The Steering Committee may also take into account organisational affiliation to ensure proportional representation and to avoid over-representation of any single actor or interest.

Duration and organisation

• The kick-off meeting of the CoP is expected to take place in December 2025.
• The initial CoP mandate will run for two years from the kick-off meeting, with possible renewal subject to Steering Committee decision.
• The CoP will be structured around plenary sessions and thematic/sectoral working groups. A chair (or co-chairs) may be nominated for each working group. Members of the Steering Committee of the BEO will also be sitting in the working groups.
• The contractor supporting the European Commission in the management of the BEO will provide secretariat support to the CoP and liaise with the BEO Steering Committee.
• Members will be asked to sign a commitment to accept to Terms of Reference defining roles, expected time commitment, conflict of interest rules, confidentiality and data protection arrangements.

Application procedure

How to apply

Applicants must submit their expression of interest through the online application form.

The application must include:

• Contact details (name, , email, country, website and organisation)
• Short description of how the applicant would contribute to the CoP and indicating preferred thematic/sectoral working groups (max 2000 words)
• CV
• Indication of the preferred working group(s)
• Indication of any potential conflicts of interest and of whether the applicant intends to share datasets or tools (and any access constraints)

Applications received after the deadline (19 October 2025) will not be considered.

Selection process and timeline

• Call open: 16 September 2025
• Call close: 19 October 2025
• Pre-selection: by the end of October 2025
• Announcement to selected applicants: First half of November 2025
• Kick-off meeting (virtual/in-person): First half of December 2025

Applicants will be informed of the outcome by email. Selected members will receive the draft terms of reference and calendar of meetings in advance of the kick-off. Upon receiving the terms of reference, they will have to confirm whether they accept being part of the CoP.

Practical information and conditions

• Languages: the working language of the CoP will be English. No interpretation or translation services will be provided.
• Costs: participation is voluntary; the European Commission does not provide remuneration. Where in-person meetings are organised, travel expenses may be reimbursed.
• Confidentiality & data protection: participants will be required to comply with confidentiality rules and EU data protection law. The processing of applicants’ personal data will comply with Commission rules; further details will be provided in the application form and terms of reference.
• Conflict of interest: applicants must declare any potential conflict of interest. The Steering Committee will assess declarations and may impose participation conditions if required.