- The European initiative brings together businesses, researchers, public officials and innovators to drive forward solutions designed to strengthen water resilience and sustainability in Europe
Last week, Málaga hosted the official launch of EIT Water, a new European Knowledge and Innovation Community established with the aim of tackling the challenges facing the water, marine and maritime (WMM) sectors and ecosystems. The event brought together representatives from the worlds of politics, business and the academic world to celebrate the launch of this European initiative.
EIT Water forms part of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a European Union body, and is one of its nine Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs). Since the very start, the initiative already has more than 150 members, has established eight regional nodes representing 29 countries, and has presented its Strategic Agenda 2027–2032, a seven-year plan aimed at transforming the resilience, sustainability and competitiveness of water, marine and maritime systems and ecosystems in Europe.
Mikael Kamp Sørensen, CEO of EIT Water, highlighted the significance of this launch: “This is a pivotal moment for Europe’s water, marine and maritime sectors and ecosystems, marking the dawn of a new era of transformative innovation to accelerate systemic solutions.” We would like to thank our members, partners, co-funders and colleagues for taking the opportunity to come together and celebrate the birth of a new community model, which will help us achieve our common goal: a healthy, resilient and sustainable water system.”
Málaga, a European hub for water innovation
The launch event, held at La Pérgola Mediterráneo, featured keynote speeches by Jessika Roswall, European Commissioner for the Environment, Water Resilience and the Competitive Circular Economy; Stefaan Hermans, Director for Competitiveness, Talent Mobility and International Cooperation at the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture; Tim Smedley, environmental journalist and award-winning author of the book The Last Drop: Solving the World’s Water Crisis; and Dr Imogen Napper, marine scientist and National Geographic explorer whose research has helped drive concrete action against plastic pollution.
Jessika Roswall opened the event with a video message addressed to the EIT Water community, in which she emphasised the role of innovation in strengthening water resilience. As she pointed out, transforming European research and innovation into practical solutions will accelerate the development of promising technologies and generate tangible benefits for citizens, whilst strengthening Europe’s long-term resilience.
The choice of Málaga as the venue for the launch reflects the city’s potential to tackle water-related challenges from a holistic perspective. On the eve of the event, 14 October, the Mayor of Málaga, Francisco de la Torre Prados, welcomed representatives from EIT Water at an official reception and expressed his support for the initiative.
During the reception, the mayor highlighted Málaga’s suitability as an environment for developing and testing innovative water solutions: “Málaga is an exceptional real-world laboratory for EIT Water, because it brings together all water-related challenges within a single catchment area, just 30 minutes apart, alongside a technological ecosystem comprising 700 companies and 29,000 engineers. From the mountain reservoirs to the Mediterranean Sea, our city brings together talent, industry and public administration to test, validate and scale up the technologies of the future, placing innovation and water sustainability at the heart of our growth.”
Algaenius, winner of the European WAVEMAKER 2026 award
The meeting also announced the winner of the EIT Water WAVEMAKER 2026 innovation award, funded by a philanthropic donation from the Poul Due Jensen / Grundfos Foundation.
The WAVEMAKER awards aim to identify and support start-ups and research-driven projects with high potential in the water, marine and maritime sectors. Eight winners from the regional rounds held across Europe in September were invited to compete for the European award and a grant of 5,000 euros to develop their projects.
Following a series of short presentations, the biotechnology start-up Algaenius was announced as the 2026 European winner. The company uses halophilic algae, adapted to saline environments, as a method for pre-treating seawater prior to desalination.
Meinke van Oenen, founder and CEO of Algaenius, highlighted the importance of this recognition in the early stages of the project and the need to foster European collaboration to broaden the reach of innovative solutions.
The three finalist initiatives also received a one-year membership of EIT Water, which will give them access to a leading European network, specialist advice and knowledge-sharing to facilitate the commercialisation and expansion of their projects.
About EIT Water
EIT Water is the European knowledge and innovation community dedicated to the water, marine and maritime sectors and ecosystems. It connects businesses, innovators, researchers, educators and policy-makers to tackle the most pressing water-related challenges, from scarcity, droughts and floods to pollution and ecosystem degradation.
Through the connection of ideas, talent and investment, EIT Water works to develop practical solutions that strengthen Europe’s water resilience, boost the blue economy and protect ecosystems, following the ‘from source to sea’ approach.
EIT Water is part of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), a European Union body integrated into Horizon Europe, the European framework programme for research and innovation.
Further information https://eitwater.eu.