“SustainaBlue”: Capacity building at 4 Universities in Malaysia and Indonesia
“SustainaBlue” is an interdisciplinary program co-funded by the EU aimed at supporting four Higher Education Institutions in Malaysia and Indonesia. It focuses on strengthening the connection between education, the job market, and society within the framework of the blue economy and green transition.
The program duration is 36 months and is supported by the collaboration of 11 stakeholders (Universities, Organizations, and the Productive Sector) from Greece, Cyprus, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Its implementation is based on six interdependent projects to be gradually implemented over the course of three years.
* The partners participating in the program are the Universiti Malaysia Terengganu (UMT), acting as the main coordinator of the program, along with Universiti Sains Malaysia (USM), and Malaysia Aquaculture Development Association from Malaysia, University of Indonesia (UI), Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), and PT Pandu Bina Sejahtera (PT PBS) from Indonesia, Aegean Rebreath (AR), Symplexis, and the University of the Aegean from Greece, and the CSI Center for Social Innovation Ltd (CSI) and the University of Cyprus (UCY) from Cyprus.
Initially, the program plans to collect successful Quintuple Helix frameworks/models from EU member states and evaluate them, taking into account the national specificities of the two Asian countries. This evaluation will contribute to the development of recommendations to be additionally utilized by the Universities in Malaysia and Indonesia to establish four “Sustainable Blue Economy Centres”. The operation of these Centers is expected to enhance synergies through multiple actions and promote academic knowledge. Additionally, significant benefits are expected in terms of raising awareness among local communities about the solutions that the blue economy can offer.
At the same time, the program will focus on assessing the needs and developing the capacities of administrative and academic staff of the Universities, through specially designed webinars, to effectively participate in the operation of the “Sustainable Blue Economy Centres”. The training of academic staff at Asian universities will also include the design of innovative study programs aimed at enhancing the skills of students for the sustainable blue economy job market.
As part of the program, the development of a digital platform is also planned to support and promote practices related to green and blue development at the local, regional, and national levels.
Over the course of 3 years, awareness campaigns, audiovisual material, and targeted events will be developed in the two Asian countries. Additionally, the program envisages the publication of a specially designed website providing all information related to the project activities, partners, news, and results of the program.
