MMLL Schedule

Pre-Program Schedule

To ensure participants arrive prepared to engage meaningfully with the Mar Menor challenge, the summer school includes Pre - program learning series held between May and June - which would consist of biweekly 90 min sessions. These sessions would help establish a shared foundation in context, methods, collaboration, and data literacy, allowing the in-person program in cartagena to focus on deeper exploration, field engagement, and solution development.

The pre-program series is guided by a central question:

What do participants need to understand before arriving in Cartagena in order to contribute effectively to interdisciplinary, data-informed, and community-engaged work?

Through four sessions, we will:

Gain context about the Mar Menor Socio-ecological system - studying the area itself
Understand the key challenges and mission areas
Develop familiarity with design thinking and problem framing (narrowing)
Build data literacy and awareness of available datasets
Forming interdisciplinary team capable of working effectively across different background and languages (student skill based assessment)
Begin thinking about community engagement and stakeholder perspectives

This preparation with some additional resources (portal that has some context, datasets ready, etc) that we create would ensure that participants arrive ready to collaborate across disciplines, engage with local stakeholders, and translate the analysis insight into feasible ideas.

Session List

Date	Time	Title	Led by
June 2	@9amET	Mar Menor Context	MariLuz Maté Sánchez-Val
June 16	@9amET	Working Groups	Manny Patole
June 30	@9amET	Data Analysis	Ricardo Teruel

Schedule

July 13th
Time	Session	Format	Description & Objective	Participants
09:00 – 09:45	Opening Session & Overview of the missions again	Institutional Welcome	Official welcome to the Summer School. Introduction to the objectives of the programme, the Scientific Mission approach and the Living Lab methodology.	Organising institutions
10:00 – 11:30	Roundtable: Territory, Responsibility and Science	Stakeholder Roundtable	Key actors involved in the Mar Menor ecosystem present their perspective on the current situation. Each participant explains the environmental impact from their field and proposes a measurable objective that should be achieved in the future.	- Marine scientists - Environmental authorities - NGOs - Coastal municipalities - Restoration experts
11:30 – 12:00	Coffee Break	Networking	Informal interaction among participants.	—
12:00 – 13:00	Team building	Cohesion activity and brainstorming	To encourage inclusive participation and focused idea generation. It will begin with a short individual reflection during which participants will independently generate ideas, followed by a collective sharing, where ideas are presented, clarified, and expanded without evaluation or judgment. The group will then work collaboratively to cluster related ideas into key themes, identifying patterns, synergies, and emerging priorities.	Process facilitator
13:30 – 14:30	Lunch time
14:30 – 17:30	Team working session	Team Development	Team working session begin and teams are open to visit mentors for their guidance	Mentors: participants from round table
18:30	Welcome Dinner and touristic visit	Social Activity	Informal networking among participants and faculty.	All participants

Day 2, Tuesday, July 14
Time	Session	Format	Description & Objective	Participants
09:00 – 10:30	Workshop: Environmental situation	Scientific Workshop	Introduction to environmental cases. Closing de loop: Micribial and circular strategies for renewal resource valorization	Dimitris Cyprus University / Eleni blkabal
10:30 – 11:00	Coffee break
11:00 – 12:30	Workshop: Governance and Policy	Scientific Workshop	Examination of how environmental policies and innovation frameworks support sustainable transformation.	Cher Li- Ashton Business School
12:30 – 13:00	Break
13:00 – 14:00	Workshop: Community engagement	Workshop: Community engagement	Community engagement approaches Learning from local and lived experience Getting students familiar with the community engagement approaches before field visit. (Co-creating with communities understanding from their lived experience their problems/challenges - since we also did a qualitative data workshop in the morning this can be an addition to how to take this lived experience and translate them into insights.)	NYU - Professor Manny Patole
14:00 – 15:00	Lunch time
15:00 – 16:30	Workshop: Environmental Modelling and Monitoring	Scientific Workshop	Exploration of modelling approaches used to study environmental systems. Examples include flood dynamics, invasive species monitoring and environmental impacts affecting the Mar Menor.	Maurizio Porfiri, Charlie Mydlarz & Bartosz Bonczak
16:30 – 18:30	Team Working Session	Team Development	Dedicated mentoring sessions where teams refine their projects, and specific applications from previous workshops.	All mentors

Day 3, July 15th
Time	Session	Format	Description & Objective	Participants
09:00 – 13:00	Living Lab Field Visit At San Pedro del Pinatar (Murcia)	Field Excursion	Participants visit Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO) Research Center. Seminar about BELICH project by Juanma Ruiz (IP and project manager). The objective is to understand how academic research and innovation are applied in the Mar Menor ecosystem to evaluate and provide reliable data on ecosystem status. The bus will depart from Cartagena at 9:00.
13:00 - 15:30	The bus will depart from Cartagena at 9:00.		Transfer from the Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO) to Los Alcázares in Bus, with a break for lunch before boarding.
15:30 – 17:30	Boat Exploration at the Mar Menor. Departure from Los Alcázares at 15.30	Field Experience	Field Experience. Guided boat excursion across the lagoon and interior isles to observe the ecological context and environmental affecting the ecosystem. Faculty and local ecologists’ associations (SOS Mar Menor and Pacto por el Mar Menor)	- Cruceros Mar Menor - Pacto por el Mar Menor and SOS Mar Menor
18:00	Informal Coastal Gathering	Social Event	Informal networking event in a coastal location with light refreshments.	All participants

Day 4, July 16th
Time	Session	Format	Description & Objective	Participants
09:00 – 10:30	From Environmental Challenges to Entrepreneurial Opportunities	Innovation & Entrepreneurship Dialogue	Entrepreneurs, innovation leaders and ecosystem builders discuss how environmental and territorial challenges can generate new ventures, applied technologies and impact-driven initiatives. The session explores entrepreneurship as a tool for ecological transition, regional transformation and societal impact, helping students understand how scientific and technical ideas can evolve into scalable and mission-oriented projects.	Miguel Huguet + Manny Patole & Charlie Mydlarz
11:00 – 12:00	Pitching for Impact: Communicating Science, Innovation and Purpose	Applied Communication Workshop	Intensive hands-on workshop focused on transforming scientific and technical ideas into compelling narratives for decision-makers, investors, institutions and society. Participants will work on storytelling, impact framing, visual communication and persuasive pitching strategies adapted to sustainability and environmental innovation contexts.	Science communication experts
13:00 – 14:30	Lunch time
14:30 – 17:30	Innovation Studio & Project Mentoring	Team Development Lab	Dedicated collaborative working session where teams refine their projects, strengthen feasibility and impact dimensions, and prepare their final presentations. Faculty mentors and invited experts provide targeted feedback on scientific robustness, implementation potential and communication strategy.	Faculty mentors and invited experts
20:00	Closing Dinner – El Batel	Social Event	Formal dinner bringing together participants, experts and organisers.	All participants

Day 5, July 17th
Time	Session	Format	Description & Objective	Participants
10:00 – 12:00	Final Project Presentations	Public Session	Teams present the results of their work developed during the week. Presentations are evaluated by an expert panel composed of scientists, stakeholders and programme organisers. 7 minutes of presentation followed by 3 minutes of Q&A for each team.	Faculty · Stakeholders · Jury
13:00 – 14:00	Awards & Closing Ceremony	Ceremony	Recognition of outstanding projects and official closing of the Summer School.	Organising institutions

Mar Menor Living Lab Speakers
	Genoveva Aparicio Serrano Environmental economist and researcher specialized in the socioeconomic impacts of marine pollution, environmental quality and territorial sustainability. She holds a PhD in Economics from the Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena, where her doctoral research focused on the economic consequences of environmental degradation in coastal territories, particularly in the Mar Menor region. Her work combines geospatial big data, environmental economics and spatial analysis to study tourism dynamics, business resilience and regional inequalities linked to ecosystem deterioration. She has published in leading international journals including Ecological Economics, Journal of Environmental Management and Current Issues in Tourism, and collaborates in interdisciplinary projects on ecological transition and marine sustainability.
	Carlos M. Duarte Distinguished Professor of Marine Science at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) and one of the world’s leading marine ecologists. His research focuses on marine ecosystems, climate change, biodiversity conservation and the role of oceans in carbon sequestration (“blue carbon”). He has led internationally recognized initiatives on ocean sustainability and ecosystem restoration, combining scientific research with global environmental policy and innovation. Professor Duarte has published more than 1,000 scientific works and has been recognized among the world’s most influential climate scientists. In 2025, he received the Japan Prize for his pioneering contributions to marine ecology and blue carbon research.
	Cristina González de Haro Researcher and specialist in satellite data applications for environmental analysis and territorial monitoring. Her work combines remote sensing, spatial data analysis and environmental intelligence to support sustainable decision-making in vulnerable ecosystems such as the Mar Menor.
	Miguel Huguet Innovation and entrepreneurship expert with experience in technology transfer, startup ecosystems and sustainable innovation strategies. His work explores how scientific and engineering solutions can evolve into scalable projects with environmental and social impact.
	Cher Li Researcher and lecturer at Aston Business School specialized in entrepreneurship, innovation ecosystems and technology-driven business development. Her work explores how entrepreneurial thinking, innovation strategy and collaborative ecosystems can support sustainable economic growth and social impact. She has experience working with interdisciplinary and international initiatives connecting academia, industry and public institutions, with particular interest in innovation education and entrepreneurial capacity building. Within the Living Lab context, her contribution focuses on innovation methodologies, startup development and translating ideas into impactful projects.
	Mariluz Maté-Sánchez-Val Vice Rector for Economic Affairs at the Universidad Politécnica de Cartagena and researcher in economics, innovation and territorial development. Her work focuses on building interdisciplinary and international collaborations connecting universities, institutions, industry and entrepreneurship ecosystems to address societal and environmental challenges through technology and innovation. She has promoted strategic initiatives in sustainability, entrepreneurship and internationalization, including collaborative programmes with global academic partners and applied innovation projects linked to the Mar Menor. Her research interests include spatial economics, network interactions, environmental sustainability and innovation policy.
	Manny Patole Urban innovation professional and member of the academic engagement ecosystem connected to New York University. His work focuses on community-centered data science, interdisciplinary collaboration and the development of applied projects linking technology, cities and sustainability.
	Ángel Pérez Ruzafa Professor and marine ecologist specialized in coastal lagoon ecosystems and environmental dynamics of the Mar Menor. His research focuses on ecological resilience, eutrophication processes and the interaction between human activity and fragile coastal systems. He has become one of the leading scientific voices in the monitoring and restoration debate surrounding the Mar Menor.
	Maurizio Porfiri Professor at the New York University and Director of the NYU Center for Urban Science and Progress (CUSP). His research combines engineering, complex systems, network science and environmental dynamics, with applications ranging from urban systems and marine ecosystems to collective behavior and sustainability. Internationally recognized for his interdisciplinary approach, Professor Porfiri has led pioneering projects integrating sensing technologies, data science and environmental monitoring to address societal and ecological challenges. His work bridges engineering innovation with public impact, particularly in areas related to resilience, sustainability and human–environment interactions
	Isabel Rubio Co-founder of Pacto por el Mar Menor and long-standing advocate for environmental protection and civic participation. Her work focuses on connecting science, society and institutions to advance sustainable solutions and collective responsibility for the future of the Mar Menor.
	Ricardo Teruel Researcher and technical specialist in environmental data processing and geospatial analysis. His work includes satellite imagery interpretation, environmental datasets and analytical tools that support evidence-based approaches to sustainability and territorial planning.
	Dimitris Tsaltas Professor of Microbiology and Biotechnology at the Cyprus University of Technology and internationally recognized researcher in food microbiology, biotechnology and sustainable agri-food systems. His research focuses on microbial ecology, precision agriculture, environmental sustainability and the application of biotechnology to improve food quality and ecosystem resilience. He has coordinated and participated in numerous European research and innovation projects, promoting interdisciplinary collaboration between science, technology and sustainability. Within the Living Lab framework, his work contributes expertise on environmental biotechnology, sustainable agriculture and innovation for resilient ecosystems.
	Juan María Vázquez Professor, researcher and public policy leader specialized in science, higher education and innovation policy. He is currently Regional Minister for Environment, Universities, Research and the Mar Menor in the Government of the Region of Murcia. Previously, he served as Spain’s Secretary General for Science and Innovation and Secretary General for Universities, combining academic leadership with high-level institutional responsibilities in research and higher education. A Full Professor at the Universidad de Murcia, his work has focused on strengthening scientific ecosystems, university collaboration and innovation-driven regional development, with particular attention to sustainability and the environmental recovery of the Mar Menor.