Representatives of the ten organisations driving the SOLLAGUA research project met on 17, 18 and 19 March in Barcelona for their fifth in-person consortium meeting, at a key stage as the initiative enters its final year of implementation.

The meeting, organised by Fundació Solidaritat UB, provided an opportunity to review in detail the progress of the three working groups, assess the main milestones ahead, and anticipate potential challenges related to their implementation.

During the first part of the meeting, the conclusions of Deliverable 2.2, Strategy for the deployment of living labs focused on sustainable water management, and Deliverable 3.1.1, Strategic report on the long-term deployment of nature-based solutions (NbS), were presented. Both deliverables have been published recently.

The status of the nature-based solution demonstrators for water reuse to be deployed in Cheles (Extremadura, Spain), Zambujeira (Beja, Portugal) and Caumont (Occitanie, France) was also reviewed, with their commissioning scheduled for the coming months.

In this context, the partners discussed the approach to the training and dissemination sessions to be held in the three pilot territories, aimed at explaining on site the operation and scope of the technologies developed, thereby facilitating their understanding among local and regional stakeholders.

SOLLAGUA Nexus digital platform

Another of the aspects analysed in depth was the future digital matchmaking platform, SOLLAGUA Nexus, whose development is led by CTA and which aims to facilitate connections between providers of innovative solutions and organisations interested in improving sustainable water management.

In terms of communication and dissemination, the consortium agreed to strengthen the search for synergies with other related projects, both within and beyond the SUDOE area, in order to broaden the impact of the results achieved.

The meeting also included the participation of the associated partners Universitat de Barcelona (UB), Lisboa E-NOVA, Área Metropolitana de Lisboa and Biyiud, as well as the Ukrainian association Lviv Agglomeration, which was specially invited to share experiences and explore potential avenues for international collaboration.

SOLLAGUA, which has a total budget of €1.8 million funded by the Interreg SUDOE programme, will conclude at the end of 2026.