The Santorini Blue Loop Living Lab is designed as an ongoing process, not a one-off event. Its future activities will revolve around three core goals: reducing marine pollution, promoting the circular economy, and developing sustainable practices on the island. These goals are pursued through a bioregional approach that links the marine environment with water, energy, food and waste management on land.

Future activities will build on the foundation laid during the May 2026 launch and will be organised around three thematic routes: Sea, Sustainable Tourism, and Terrestrial Biodiversity and Sustainable Viticulture. The Living Lab brings together research projects, innovation initiatives, local organisations and professionals, schools and residents to connect immediate environmental action with long-term systemic change.

The Living Lab will continue to activate the Plastic Lab, which was one of the central elements of the launch programme. Through practical demonstrations and participatory activities, participants explore how discarded plastic can be collected, sorted, processed and transformed into new useful objects. These sessions introduce circular economy principles, reuse practices and prevention-oriented thinking.

Future actions will also include continued beach clean-ups, underwater clean-up operations, educational workshops for schools, and awareness sessions on marine ecosystems such as Posidonia seagrass meadows. The Living Lab will engage fishers through the Fisher Guardians programme, connect schools through the Blue Schools Network, and support citizen entrepreneurs through the Citizen Litter Entrepreneurs initiative.

The purpose of these activities is to test practical solutions in real conditions and build a community of practice that can sustain the transition beyond the project’s lifetime. The Living Lab serves as a platform for dialogue and co-creation, where stakeholders jointly define problems, design solutions, pilot actions and evaluate outcomes.

The goal is to position Santorini as a model for circular, resilient and community-driven island development. The Living Lab aims to create lasting change: reducing marine pollution through prevention and cleanup, shifting towards circular economy practices, and building resilience in both marine and terrestrial ecosystems. By promoting a community-driven movement, the Living Lab can build a sense of stewardship that outlives the initial project, creating an enduring legacy of environmental ethos and citizen action.