Development Policy Foundation

28/09/2026

Low-Trophic Aquaculture Enabler (ULTAN), under the ULTFARMS – Circular Low-Trophic Offshore Aquaculture in Wind Farms and Restoration of Marine Space project, continues to move from planning to implementation. Following a recent on-the-spot visit to Ustka and Rowy, the next steps beyond the roadmap priorities are now taking shape.

A key milestone is the installation of the first public seawater quality monitoring buoy along the Polish coast. The buoy is currently being moored and securely anchored in Rowy Harbour, with additional ballast added after this summer's storms to ensure it can withstand the challenging Baltic winter conditions. The data collected by the buoy will provide the baseline information needed for the future near-shore demonstration of low-trophic aquaculture.

The monitoring data will be publicly accessible through the Municipality of Ustka website: https://ustka.ug.gov.pl/ and via the Waterly platform: https://waterly.cloud/, allowing researchers, stakeholders, and the wider community to follow seawater conditions in real time.

Horizon Europe Instytut Oceanologii PAN Waterly European Commission Deltares Urząd Morski w Słupsku Gmina Ustka

Read the full article on our website: https://fpr.org.pl/ultfarm-ustka-low-trophic-aquaculture-enabler-ultan-the-first-public-monitoring-buoy-on-the-polish-coast/

24/09/2026

An ongoing environmental assessment in Crocmaz, Moldova is conducting field surveys to identify erosion hotspots and floodplain areas affected by seasonal overflows and seasonal floodplain isolation. As part of this work, a comprehensive stocktaking of trees and submerged trunks is being carried out under the project "Sediment Tracking and Transboundary Cooperation Strategy for the Lower Dniester River," implemented within the DANube SEdiment Restoration (DANSER) project.

The photos tell an important story. The dark bark marks visible on the trunks of the swamp ash trees reveal the extent of river level fluctuations over time. These fluctuations are becoming increasingly irregular as a result of climate change. While prolonged dry spells and exceptionally low water levels are becoming more frequent, the river continues to experience significant seasonal variations. One of the photos even captures a heron, a long-legged wading bird, inspecting the unusually low water level in Crocmaz in 2026, offering a striking reminder of how these conditions are changing.

As river levels decline, oxbow lakes become disconnected from the main river channel, reducing water exchange and habitat connectivity. At the same time, dead trunks and submerged snags can impair water quality, obstruct water circulation, contribute to habitat degradation, and ultimately reduce the valuable ecosystem services these floodplain habitats provide.

Our approach balances ecological restoration with biodiversity conservation. Rather than removing dead trees entirely, we selectively trim only the sections of trunks that pose a hazard or block water circulation, while leaving the non-hazardous portions in place. This helps restore water connectivity while preserving important habitats for wildlife and maintaining the ecological functions that deadwood provides.

Learn more: https://danserproject.eu/

Primaria Crocmaz Horizon Europe Parcul Național “Nistrul de Jos” Central European Initiative - CEI

10/09/2026

The European Union and the Gmina Ustka have launched a fully funded scientific research project to assess the feasibility of farming mussels and seaweed as sustainable alternative livelihoods. This is part of the ULTFARMS project, funded by Horizon EuropeEuropean Commission, with the Development Policy Foundation as the project initiator for the Municipality of Ustka.

Thank you to Radio Gdańsk for highlighting this important initiative and its potential to support resilient coastal communities and a sustainable blue economy.
Read the original Radio Gdańsk post here:
https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=1965021914696647&id=100035665726745&post_id=100035665726745_1965021914696647&rdid=te2p3c0tqI3YH5aK #

🔵 Z powodu braku ryb w Bałtyku i słabych połowów coraz więcej rybaków z Pomorza decyduje się na złomowanie swoich kutrów. Nieoczekiwanie z pomocą przyszła nauka i… Unia Europejska. 🔗⤵️

09/09/2026

Our friends at B-prepared Project have just shared a great video from the emergency preparedness live drill in Rowy, Ustka, Poland Gmina Ustka

See how local authorities, emergency services, and community members joined forces to practice responding to emergencies and disasters, helping build a safer and more resilient community.

📺 Watch the video here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KPtbOM9ByU

The drill was organized as part of the Building PREPAREDness with Collaborative Knowledge Platform, Gamification and Serious Game in Virtual Reality (BPrepared) Project under Horizon Europe.

We compared the B-prepared digital tools - cost, efficiency, time, ...

07/09/2026

The stakeholder engagement and problem mapping were conducted in Bilyayivka, Odesa Oblast, Ukraine, to assess the progression of reed and vegetation succession throughout the Lower Dniester Floodplains.
The project implemented under Reconnecting the Turunchuk River and Floodplain Lakes to Restore Migratory Fish Habitats in the Lower Dniester“ and being a part of “Safeguarding Migratory Fish and their Habitats in the Danube River Basin and beyond or “DANUBElifelines” and funded within the Call HORIZON-MISS-2024-OCEAN-01-02 by the European Commission.
The Safyany Lake System, located within the Lower Dniester Floodplains, was once a single, interconnected waterbody that sustained abundant biodiversity, productive fisheries, and local livelihoods in the early 20th century.
As shown on the map, by the 1960s the system had already undergone significant changes. The former open access from Bilyayivka is now completely overgrown, leaving no passage. The Nikiforove Conduit, which previously provided water exchange and circulation, is also overgrown and impassable, despite having been cleared in 2018 (marked with a triangle on the map). Meanwhile, the Kurudorova Passage has become an oxbow dead zone, experiencing widespread summer fish kills (marked with a hexagon on the map). As a result, the lake system is undergoing rapid ecological succession, with open water gradually being replaced by dense reed beds.
This overgrowth has been caused by a combination of factors, including the rapid progression of vegetation encroachment driven by low water levels and climate change, the absence of boat movement, the decline of fisheries due to the war and the lack of regulatory frameworks within the National Park, and the collapse of tourism as the area has become a war zone.
The proposed solutions include regular wetland management through winter reed cutting and the clearing of passages, ditches, canals, and conduits to restore water circulation. In addition, introducing controlled fisheries under a jointly agreed modus operandi with the National Park would help maintain the waterways while supporting local livelihoods. In the longer term, the revival of tourism, promoting the area as the "Dniester Amazon", could contribute to both wetland conservation and the local economy once peace is restored.
Horizon Europe BOKU University Біляївська територіальна громада Біляївська міська рада DANUBElifelines Central European Initiative - CEI

27/08/2026

Council of the Baltic Sea States (CBSS) supports a cross-border initiative that brings together partners from Estonia, Poland, Norway, Finland, and Ukraine. The project focuses on climate change mitigation, cultural heritage preservation, and biodiversity protection in coastal communities across both maritime and large lake regions. Its activities primarily support the communities of Ustka (Poland) Gmina Ustka and Espoo (Finland) on the Baltic Sea coast, Mustvee (Estonia) on the shores of Lake Peipsi, and Odesa (Ukraine) on the Black Sea.

Through interactive workshops, study visits, co-creation sessions, cross-border cooperation, and peer-to-peer learning, the project empowers communities with practical tools to adapt to climate change, strengthen grassroots democracy, and transfer community-driven solutions and innovative local models. In addition, the project supports community-led micro-grants that strengthen local preparedness, resilience, and environmental stewardship through initiatives tailored to local needs. These include providing uniforms for junior volunteer firefighters in Ustka, Poland, supporting the removal of ghost nets in the Åland Islands, Finland, and expanding a community heritage garden in Mustvee, Estonia, where local residents and the Peipsiland Museum are cultivating traditional plant varieties, preserving agricultural heritage, and creating educational spaces that celebrate the unique cultural traditions of the Lake Peipsi region and its Old Believer communities.

Peipsi Koostöö Keskus / Peipsi Center for Transboundary Cooperation, Development Policy Foundation, Smart Innovation Norway, and Odesa 5T Office are fostering collaboration among these communities, demonstrating how environmental sustainability, cultural heritage preservation, and community resilience can go hand in hand. By sharing knowledge, expertise, and innovative local solutions, the project aims to inspire sustainable recovery and climate resilience across the Baltic Sea Region while supporting Ukraine's path toward a more resilient future.

For more info regarding the project and actions, please also see:
https://cbss.org/psf/ongoing-projects/ and https://www.facebook.com/peipsicenter/posts/pfbid021KHZDfSeuNd2G3fNy5pK4hWAcPGP4kMUusZCvHJ6GgmFfvmkR46A99yXWsHZ88eol

27/08/2026

Aquaculture structures that once supported coastal livelihoods across Maluku, Indonesia, including Eastern Halmahera and the Halmahera Sea, a region renowned for its spectacular coral reefs and rich marine biodiversity, now stand damaged or abandoned. Many cages are half empty, while others have been completely destroyed following by unusually strong winds, waves, strong currents and localized vortexes. Although Indonesia and the Baltic Sea have very different marine environments but they share a common denominator: stronger winds and increasingly dynamic sea conditions driven by climate change.

These contrasting experiences create exciting opportunities for collaboration. Indonesia offers centuries of practical knowledge in adapting aquaculture to dynamic tropical seas, while Europe contributes expertise in marine spatial planning, offshore engineering, ecosystem restoration and regenerative aquaculture. Along Poland's Baltic coast, the rapid expansion of offshore wind farms (OWFs) is creating new opportunities for the co-location of renewable energy and low-trophic aquaculture. Projects such as ULTFARMS, funded by Horizon Europe, are demonstrating how mussels and seaweed can be cultivated within offshore wind farms, transforming shared marine space into systems that produce renewable energy, sustainable biomass and ecosystem services simultaneously.

Another promising development is the emergence of Nature Credits. Healthy ecosystems, such as coral reefs, mangroves, seagrass meadows and regenerative aquaculture systems, can become investable natural assets, creating financial incentives for businesses, governments and investors to support biodiversity restoration while generating additional income for the coastal communities that actively protect and restore nature.

Please visit our Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/development-policy-foundation-pl and Website: https://fpr.org.pl for more details.

Gmina Ustka European Commission

14/07/2026

The Municipality of Odesa Одеська міська рада is advancing marine biodiversity conservation through the BioProtect Marine Planner Coastal Demonstration, supporting the protection and restoration of critical habitats such as the Kuyalnyk Estuary, submarine seagrass meadows, and rocky reefs. As the war in Ukraine continues, Odesa's coastline has become one of the places where the environmental consequences of conflict are increasingly visible. Repeated attacks on critical infrastructure, ports, and coastal facilities have increased the risk of fuel and oil spills, chemical releases, damaged wastewater systems, and contaminated runoff reaching the Black Sea. Sea mines, unexploded ordnance, and military debris continue to wash ashore, while restricted access to coastal waters and beaches limits environmental monitoring. Storms and sea currents transport stranded oil residues, plastics, and hazardous materials onto the coastline, while underwater explosions and military activity generate acoustic disturbance that affects marine wildlife, particularly dolphins and other cetaceans.

These impacts extend throughout the marine ecosystem, degrading water quality through hydrocarbons, nutrients, heavy metals, and other contaminants, contributing to eutrophication and weakening habitats that support fish, benthic organisms, and other marine life. Sensitive ray species, including the common stingray and the thornback ray, are also under increasing pressure as pollution, underwater disturbance, and habitat degradation affect the Black Sea's coastal and marine ecosystems. Through systematic beach and coastal monitoring, biodiversity assessments, and stakeholder collaboration, the BioProtect demonstration will improve understanding of the war's environmental impacts by documenting shoreline changes, stranded debris, pollution, habitat conditions, and marine wildlife where access is possible.



Odesa 5T Office
European Union in Ukraine
European Commission
EU Environment
Central European Initiative - CEI

Click here for BioProtect Project: https://bioprotect-project.eu

08/07/2026

The Development Policy Foundation was pleased to join Organic Armenia in the recent Stakeholder Consultation under the ( ) project, contributing our expertise to support the participatory planning process.

The consultation brought together representatives of the Akunk community and key local stakeholders to discuss local priorities, challenges, risks, hazards, and resilience needs. Through open dialogue and collaboration, the meeting laid an important foundation for developing effective, locally owned, and community-driven resilience actions.

We are grateful for the opportunity to collaborate with Organic Armenia and contribute to strengthening climate resilience through inclusive stakeholder engagement.

Read the Organic Armenia's post here:
👉 https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BVM9oiadp/

European Commission
European Environment Agency
European Committee of the Regions

06/07/2026

The Municipality of Beliaivka Біляївська територіальна громада Біляївська міська рада is preparing an ambitious new initiative that combines biodiversity conservation, sustainable fisheries, environmental education, and improved public infrastructure at the main entrance to the Lower Dniester National Nature Park, the principal river access point for fishermen, researchers, park rangers, local communities, and visitors exploring the unique Lower Nistru river–floodplain ecosystem. As the ongoing war continues to affect Beliaivka and the wider Lower Dniester basin, essential environmental infrastructure has been delayed, local waterways and habitats have become increasingly vulnerable to pollution and degradation, and the fishing sector has faced significant challenges. Military activities, fires, pollution risks, and repeated air-raid alerts have also placed additional pressure on one of Europe's most important wetland landscapes, disrupting habitats for migratory fish, birds, and other wildlife.

The project will help address these challenges by constructing a modern Sanitary Pavilion and a Fisheries & Biodiversity Information Point at the entrance to the National Nature Park. The visitor centre will promote migratory fish conservation, bird conservation and the protection of nesting habitats, sustainable fisheries, and the restoration of healthy river–floodplain ecosystems, while providing a welcoming space for local communities, schools, scientists, fishermen, and visitors. The project will also prepare a technical project for a modern sewerage system serving the adjacent neighbourhood, creating an implementation-ready investment to improve sanitation, reduce wastewater pollution, protect water quality, and strengthen the ecological integrity of the National Nature Park.

Supporting the broader vision of DANUBElifelines, the initiative will combine scientific monitoring of fish populations and habitats, hydromorphological and sediment assessments, feasibility studies for reconnecting floodplain lakes and river channels, and the development of a long-term river–floodplain restoration and sediment management plan. By connecting nature restoration with better public infrastructure, The Municipality of Beliaivka is taking an important step towards safeguarding the Lower Nistru River, supporting sustainable fisheries, protecting internationally important wetlands for migratory birds, and preserving this remarkable freshwater ecosystem for generations to come.

BOKU University

European Union in Ukraine

European Commission
EU Science & Innovation
EU Environment