BlueAquaEdu: Innovating aquaculture education through gamification and distance learning

The BlueAquaEdu project kicked off in September 2023 as one of the blue careers project supported by the European Maritime, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF). With 8 partners from 3 European countries, the project explores gamification as a pedagogic approach to motivate teenagers and students above 18 to learn about aquaculture, post-harvesting value chain and by-products valorisation.  

The project aims to improve different kinds of skills of the next generation: digital, green, soft, transversal, inter-disciplinary, managerial, entrepreneurial and project management.

It brings together industry, educational institutions and public authorities to fill the existing gap and boost collaboration across services. It increases the educational offer and encourages young people to pursue a blue career in the aquaculture sector, with a focus on circularity and sustainability.

Many tools, one goal: attracting young people to sustainable aquaculture

The key activities of BlueAquaEdu project to attract young people to aquaculture are several: 

1. Develop a gamification application for sustainable aquaculture focussed on five fish species. The goal of the game is to turn a non-eco friendly fish farm into the best sustainably managed solution, with the lowest environmental impact.
2. Develop five common training programmes for aquaculture around the themes of cage farming, hatcheries, recirculating aquaculture systems, post-harvesting value chain, valorisation of processing by-products. To this end, the project mapped 234 aquaculture education establishments in 18 EU countries and 5 outermost regions.
3. Attract competent trainers and mentors with hands-on experience in the selected sectors who can support undergraduate and postgraduate students through a combination of training, advisory and certification activities.
4. Establish a virtual aquaculture educational network (called “v-AquaEduN”) that will expand beyond Europe and its outermost regions, to non-EU countries, including Africa.
5. Develop a BlueAquaEdu e-learning platform for mentoring and for hosting training material and modules.
6. Organise workshops, summer schools and apprenticeships in Greece, France, and Portugal. 

The BlueAquaEdu project supports important EU policies such as the EU Green Deal, Farm to Fork Strategy, Zero Pollution Action Plan, Water Framework Directive, Marine Strategy Framework Directive, Circular Economy Action Plan and the Strategic Impact Assessment Directive.

Waste as a valuable resource and driver of innovation

Circularity and the valorisation of by-products from aquaculture processes is at the heart of the project. Education is the first step toward a sustainable future.

BlueAquaEdu brings circular economy to life by showing how waste can become a driver of innovation by offering learners innovative tools to turn challenges into new opportunities for a sustainable future.

Professor Helen Miliou, BlueAquaEdu coordinator and Vice Rector of the Agricultural University of Athens, stated: 

“At BlueAquaEdu, we are proud to transform sustainability education into an interactive journey. Through our serious game, an e-learning platform, and upcoming workshops and summer schools, we empower learners to see waste not as a problem but as a valuable resource in a thriving circular economy.

We are shaping a new generation of innovators ready to tackle environmental challenges and unlock the potential of circular economy solutions, turning waste into resources for a better world.” 

Have a look at the recordings and presentation of the project workshop on processing and valorisation of by-products. Stay updated with BlueAquaEdu’s latest news, including on their summer schools and events. Follow them on their social media channels: LinkedIn, X and Facebook.

Discover the campaign of the European Commission about aquaculture.

Find out more information about the EU Aquaculture Assistance Mechanism.