Academic Focus, Design and Methodology
Academic Focus
The programme is structured around a single integrated theme: Coastal Sustainability and Resilience in the Mar Menor Living Lab.
Students analyse interconnected challenges including water quality, microplastics, flooding risks, circular reuse of waste, and sustainable governance models.
Academic Design and Methodology
Rather than working on predefined projects, participants join interdisciplinary international teams to investigate open scientific questions related to environmental sustainability, territorial resilience, and coastal governance. Using real environmental data, field observation and interaction with local stakeholders, teams analyse the complex dynamics shaping the lagoon ecosystem. The program combines scientific inquiry with entrepreneurial thinking, encouraging participants to transform research insights into practical solutions and potential environmental ventures capable of generating both ecological and economic value. By the end of the programme, each team presents:
- a scientifically grounded contribution addressing the research question of their mission, or
- a solution-oriented proposal with entrepreneurial potential aimed at supporting the sustainable transformation of coastal territories.
Throughout the week, participants follow a scientific workflow comparable to applied sustainability research:
UNDERSTAND → DESIGN → MEASURE → IMPLEMENT → COMMUNICATE
SCIENTIFIC MISSIONS
Participants will work in interdisciplinary teams addressing one of three Scientific Missions related to the sustainability challenges of the Mar Menor lagoon. Each mission combines a scientific research question aimed at generating rigorous analytical insights and an entrepreneurial challenge focused on developing practical and scalable solutions. Through the missions, participants explore how scientific analysis, environmental data and stakeholder knowledge can lead to actionable responses to complex coastal sustainability problems.
Mission Briefs
Participants will work in interdisciplinary teams addressing one of three Scientific Missions related to the sustainability challenges of the Mar Menor lagoon. These missions provide a thematic direction grounded on the ongoing environmental crisis of Mar Menor while allowing teams to refine their research questions through data exploration, community-engagement, stakeholder perspectives and field observations.
Each mission combines two complementary components. The first one focuses on scientific and data driven analysis, where students analyze environmental, spatial and scoio economic datasets related to the lagoon system. The second focuses on solution development, where teams use a design-thinking, community engagement approach to translate these insights into practical and scalable responses.
Students/Participants should focus to consider “who their work is for”, developing outputs that speak to specific audiences such as local communities, policy makers, environmental organizations. Through this process, teams explore how scientific analysis, responsible data use and community engagement work together with complex technical and environmental aspects to address complex coastal sustainability challenges.
From Nutrient Pollution to Circular Resource Flows
Agricultural runoff and organic waste streams are among the main drivers of nutrient accumulation in the Mar Menor lagoon. Transforming these flows into productive resources represents a key opportunity to reduce environmental pressure while creating new economic activities.
Scientific Research Question
How can material flow analysis identify the dominant nutrient pathways driving eutrophication in the Mar Menor lagoon and quantify their potential for circular resource recovery?
Entrepreneurial Solution
What scalable circular economy system could convert agricultural or marine residues from the Mar Menor basin into a viable commercial product while significantly reducing nutrient pollution?
Focus Areas
- nutrient flow modelling
- agricultural runoff analysis
- circular resource optimisation
- environmental impact reduction
Data Systems for Detecting Diffuse Environmental Pressure
Diffuse pollution processes affecting coastal ecosystems are often difficult to detect and monitor in real time. Advances in remote sensing, environmental sensors and data integration create new opportunities to better understand and anticipate pollution dynamics.
Scientific Research Question
Which combination of satellite observations, environmental indicators and in-situ measurements can most accurately predict diffuse pollution dynamics affecting the ecological balance of the Mar Menor lagoon?
Entrepreneurial Solution
What environmental monitoring platform could provide real-time pollution intelligence for public authorities, environmental agencies and coastal managers in the Mar Menor region?
Focus Areas
- remote sensing indicators
- environmental data modelling
- pollution prediction systems
- ecological monitoring
Predicting and Reducing Flood-Driven Environmental Risk
Extreme rainfall events, land-use changes and hydrological dynamics increasingly influence the environmental pressures affecting the Mar Menor watershed. Understanding these interactions is essential for designing adaptive strategies capable of reducing pollution transport and improving coastal resilience.
Scientific Research Question
Which hydrological variables and land-use patterns most strongly determine flood-driven nutrient and sediment transport into the Mar Menor lagoon?
Entrepreneurial Solution
What infrastructure or nature-based intervention could reduce flood-driven pollution entering the Mar Menor while remaining technically feasible and economically scalable?
Focus Areas
- watershed hydrological modelling
- land-use analysis
- flood dynamics and runoff processes
- spatial vulnerability mapping
AVAILABLE DATA & RESEARCH RESOURCES
Participants will work with real environmental data and research resources related to the Mar Menor ecosystem.
Available datasets and scientific resources include:
- Sentinel satellite imagery from the European Space Agency (ESA)
- NASA satellite environmental observations
- Regional environmental monitoring datasets
- Hydrological and rainfall records from the Mar Menor watershed
- Land-use and agricultural activity maps
- Environmental research projects developed at UPCT
These resources allow teams to approach the missions as applied research objectives grounded in real data.
PROGRAMME AWARDS
At the end of the program, two awards will be granted to recognise the most outstanding contributions developed by the teams.
A) Best Scientific Proposal Award
This recognition is presented to the project demonstrating the strongest scientific foundation, methodological rigor, and potential to advance knowledge addressing challenges within the Mar Menor socio-ecological system. The selected team will have the opportunity to work with participating faculty and Mar Menor partner organizations to further develop their project into a scientific and academic contribution that supports evidence-informed decision-making and generates public benefit through research, collaboration, and community engagement.
B) Entrepreneurial Development Award
This recognition is presented to the project demonstrating the greatest potential to become a viable, sustainable solution delivering measurable social, environmental, and economic value. The selected team will collaborate with UPCT and NYU faculty, together with selected regional partners, to further develop their idea through interdisciplinary mentorship and stakeholder engagement. The team will also be invited to present their work at the UPCT Talent Forum in October 2026, showcasing their solution to researchers, entrepreneurs, industry leaders, and community partners (resources permitting).
Organizing Committee
- Mariluz Maté-Sánchez-Val - Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena
- Manny Patole - New York University
- Ramón Pàmies - Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena
- Manuel Ruiz - Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena
- Alberto García - Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena
- Cristian Sánchez - Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena
- Genoveva Aparicio Serrano - Universidad de Alicante
- Ricardo Teruel - Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena