The objective of the EU Mission 'Restore our ocean and waters by 2030' is to provide a systemic approach for the restoration of our oceans, seas and waters by 2030. The Mission lighthouses act as hubs and platforms for the development, demonstration and deployment of solutions to support the implementation of the Mission specific objectives. The present baseline study co-authored by Ecologic Institute focuses on the Danube river basin, Atlantic and Arctic sea basin, and the Mediterranean Sea basin. The study maps the situation in the lighthouse areas in 2021-22 with respect to the Mission objectives, targets and activities.

The study delivered the following aspects:

• It proposes a draft set of indicators for measuring Mission progress towards its targets in these specific lighthouses.
• It maps major stakeholders and networks relevant for the implementation of the Mission objectives, including a comprehensive mapping of past, ongoing and future key EU and national projects.
• It presents an analysis of the Smart Specialisation Strategies (S3s) and other regional strategies in the lighthouses, mapped current governance structures and mechanisms and their alignment with Mission objectives and investigates activities to support citizen engagement and literacy in areas relevant to the Mission objectives.
• Finally, the study offers recommendations for future implementation of the Mission, presented in the form of a Strategic Note.

The results of this baseline study will feed into activities to implement the Mission, such as the Mission Implementation Platform and the Coordination and Support Actions (CSAs) in the three lighthouses.