As DTO-BioFlow moves into a more advanced phase, the focus of engagement is naturally evolving. After a period dedicated to building, testing, and refining technical components, the project is increasingly concerned with a different set of questions: Who can meaningfully use these tools? Under what conditions? And how can they be integrated into real decision-making contexts?
This shift marks an important transition, from demonstrating what is technically possible to explore what is operationally relevant. At this stage, broad awareness-raising is no longer sufficient on its own. What matters instead is creating the right spaces for dialogue with those communities that have the mandate, capacity, and interest to translate digital innovations into practice.
DTO-BioFlow engagement activities respond directly to this need by creating focused and progressive moments of interaction around its demonstrators. They are conceived as focused engagement moments where DTO-BioFlow demonstrators are discussed not as abstract prototypes, but as emerging tools with concrete applications, constraints, and dependencies. These interactions can take different forms depending on context and maturity, ranging from time-bound matchmaking events to more iterative consultation and follow-up exchanges. Rather than open or large-scale outreach activities, this approach brings together small, relevant groups to explore how emerging tools perform in real contexts: what works, what doesn’t, and what needs to happen next for them to be used beyond the project.
By convening these targeted interactions, DTO-BioFlow researchers can test assumptions, clarify expectations, and better understand the practical requirements for uptake, from usability and workflows to institutional or regulatory constraints. In this sense, engagement reflects the project’s growing maturity: it recognises that impact is built not through exposure alone, but through timely, purposeful engagement aligned with readiness and need.
Matchmaking in practice: first wave of events
With this approach in place, DTO-BioFlow has begun implementing matchmaking as a concrete engagement pathway. The first events demonstrate how targeted interaction can be adapted to very different contexts while serving the same purpose: exploring how mature demonstrators respond to real operational settings and real expectations.
Rather than applying a single standard format, each matchmaking event has been shaped around the characteristics of the tool involved: its level of maturity, the type of decisions it supports, and the communities most directly concerned. This flexibility allows matchmaking to function not as a promotional exercise, but instead as a learning process that informs both technical development and future engagement choices.
So far, several DTO-BioFlow applications have been supported through matchmaking activities, following distinct pathways and formats.
Using genetic data to support decisions on non-indigenous species: meeting with OSPAR and HELCOM representatives
As DTO-BioFlow tools began to demonstrate their readiness for real-world application, matchmaking created an opportunity to engage directly with those responsible for translating scientific evidence into policy and regulatory action. This first matchmaking event focused on how genetic monitoring and associated analytical tools can support concrete decisions on non-indigenous species, moving from detection and reporting towards assessment and management.
The engagement took place during a meeting of the OSPAR Commission in London in September 2025 and brought together 36 participants, including legal and technical representatives from 12 European countries, alongside representatives from HELCOM and industry organisations from the cruise and shipping sectors. DTO-BioFlow was invited to present European and Swedish genetic monitoring programmes and the analytical applications developed within the project, which enable the integration of genetic observations into workflows for surveillance, reporting, and decision support related to invasive species. These applications are designed to help authorities move from early detection to informed management responses, including prioritisation of risks and support to mitigation and control measures.
The discussion highlighted a clear shift in how genetic data is perceived within regulatory contexts, moving it from a primarily research-oriented output towards a credible operational input for policy and management. Importantly, the exchange confirmed strong interest from both OSPAR and HELCOM representatives in further exploring how these approaches can be integrated into existing workflows.
This was reflected in several concrete and encouraging follow-up actions. HELCOM agreed to include the Darwin Core data model in its database, creating the conditions for genetic monitoring data to be ingested and considered within regional decision-making processes. In parallel, a dedicated task group under the IC JTG Ballast & Biofouling was established to begin developing shared protocols for genetic monitoring of target alien species in ports, providing an initial technical foundation for more consistent data generation and use. The discussions also acknowledged the potential of DTO-BioFlow analytical outputs to support dynamic assessments of ballast water contingency and compliance areas, particularly in relation to marine protected areas, with further exchanges foreseen in subsequent meetings.
Taken together, these outcomes point to a promising pathway forward, indicating both institutional interest and practical next steps, while underlining the importance of continued dialogue and collaboration as genetic monitoring becomes more closely aligned with marine governance needs.
Testing digital twin tools with local authorities and practitioners at Norwegian Mission Ocean Day
As DTO-BioFlow tools addressing ecosystem dynamics at local scale began to reach a level suitable for external testing, matchmaking provided an opportunity to engage directly with those involved in day-to-day marine management and planning. This matchmaking event focused on exploring how a digital twin application combining biodiversity and environmental data can support local and regional decision-making, particularly in coastal and fjord environments.
The engagement took place during the Norwegian Mission Ocean Day in Trondheim in December 2025 and reached around 150 stakeholders from across Norway, including representatives from municipalities, research institutes, industry, national authorities, and funding organisations. The DTO-BioFlow team, led by partners from SINTEF Ocean, presented the application at a dedicated digital twin booth, inviting participants to interact directly with the tool and discuss its potential uses in their own operational contexts.
The hands-on format generated clear and constructive feedback. Stakeholders highlighted the importance of intuitive interfaces and differentiated entry points reflecting varying levels of expertise among users, such as municipal planners, scientists, and policy actors. Local authorities emphasised current priorities such as seagrass monitoring and expressed a strong need for tools that provide a holistic view of fjord systems, bringing together multiple data sources in a way that supports interpretation and communication.
Beyond specific design suggestions, the discussions provided valuable insight into expectations around digital decision-support tools. Participants underlined the need for applications that help bridge the gap between data, scientific understanding, and regulatory or planning processes, while also noting constraints related to time, capacity, and stakeholder fatigue. Overall, the matchmaking confirmed strong interest in the approach and helped clarify where further development efforts should focus, providing practical guidance for the next iteration of the tool and for future engagement with local decision-makers as it continues to mature.
Matchmaking through consecutive consultations
In addition to larger, time-bound matchmaking events, DTO-BioFlow has also applied matchmaking through a series of targeted consultation meetings, where discussions continue over time and evolve as tools and needs become clearer. This approach was applied for the application addressing biodiversity indicators (DUC2) during the Nordic BioBuz Final Online Seminar (20 November 2025), as well as for the consultation with marine protected area (MPA) administration representatives related to ecosystem monitoring (DUC5) held on 7 November 2025. In both cases, the focus was on matching concrete end-user needs with the DTO services under development, allowing for more focused and context-specific exchange.
These consultations are ongoing by design, with follow-up meetings already planned for 2026, supporting continuity and iterative refinement rather than one-off engagement.
Looking ahead: extending matchmaking to new communities
The matchmaking events carried out so far demonstrate the value of engaging different stakeholder communities once project applications reach a level of maturity that allows for meaningful exchange. By aligning each event with the specific focus and scale of individual use cases, DTO-BioFlow has been able to test relevance, gather practical feedback, and identify realistic pathways for further development.
As the project progresses, matchmaking will be extended to other DTO-BioFlow applications, each engaging stakeholder groups relevant to their thematic scope and decision-making context. This will allow the project to explore a broader range of operational settings and user needs, while continuing to refine tools through targeted interaction rather than broad, generic outreach.
By linking these engagement activities with the wider EDITO ecosystem, matchmaking supports the gradual integration of DTO-BioFlow results into shared digital ocean services. In this way, the approach helps ensure that project applications evolve in step with real-world expectations, while laying the groundwork for continued collaboration and uptake beyond the project itself.
Explore DTO-BioFlow use cases to discover how project tools are being developed and tested in real contexts and follow the project channels to stay informed about upcoming matchmaking opportunities and future engagement events.
