The President of the Eugenides Foundation, Mr Leonidas Demetriades-Evgenides, co-signed the nine Technology Roadmaps of the Waterborne Technology Platform, which were presented to the European Commissioner for Sustainable Transport and Tourism, Mr Apostolos Tzitzikostas, during the Waterborne Leadership event, held as part of Connecting Europe Days 2026.
The roadmaps cover the full spectrum of the waterborne sector: maritime technology, port ecosystems, inland waterway transport, short sea shipping, passenger ships, cruise shipping, deep-sea shipping, offshore vessels and the blue economy. They connect research, development and innovation with the development and deployment of technologies, setting specific targets for 2035, 2040 and 2050. They also identify the skills that will be required by workers across the entire maritime value chain.
As Waterborne Secretary General Jaap Gebraad noted in his address, the roadmaps were developed within five months, with the participation of the wider industry and following open consultations that gathered 520 contributions from both members and non-members of the platform. He also highlighted that, through the European Partnership on Zero-Emission Waterborne Transport, technologies have already been demonstrated at sea, followed by the first commercial orders.
Mr Demetriades-Evgenides stated:
“The value of the roadmaps will ultimately be measured by whether their priorities are translated into concrete projects, investments and deployment. It is particularly important that skills are addressed as an integral part of the technological transition itself. New solutions require people who can design, build, certify, operate and continuously improve them. Rules must be clear and implementable, based on evidence-based impact assessments and, in a global sector such as shipping, promote international cooperation, particularly through the IMO.”
The Eugenides Foundation’s longstanding contribution to maritime education and skills development is directly aligned with the need highlighted by the roadmaps: technological progress must be accompanied by appropriate education and training for the people who will put these technologies into practice.