The COLUMBUS project capitalizes on the European Commission's significant investment in marine and maritime research by ensuring accessibility and uptake of research Knowledge Outputs by end-users: policy, industry, science and wider society. COLUMBUS focuses on measurable value creation from research investments contributing to sustainable Blue Growth within the timeframe of the project. The core element of COLUMBUS's approach is to operate a network of Competence Nodes across Europe, consisting of Knowledge Fellows with a support team, who together cover all of Europe's Sea Basins and their marine and maritime activities. COLUMBUS explores and discloses results of past and current research projects on marine and maritime subjects, in particular those which could provide the solutions to overcome the challenges facing both the European marine and maritime sectors. COLUMBUS has been designed to efficiently carry out a process to identify knowledge needs from an end-user perspective so that all activities are focused on knowledge that has high potential to be impactful if identified and transferred.
