Transformative pathways of the development of the Black Sea coastal zone and the possibilities of introducing innovative technologies (Batumi case study)

Abstract

The goal of Georgia, as a sustainable development-oriented and accountable country, is to implement such an economic policy that conditions the country's sustainable development and the aforementioned ensures human well-being, taking into account the interests of economic development and environmental protection of the society. One of the important resources for the sustainable development of our country's economy is the Black Sea, the development of which should be based on the principles of the blue economy. Although the blue economy is a new policy for Georgia, timely implementation and implementation of this policy is a necessity. One of the ways to introduce the blue economy and create a sustainable environment is considered to be the development of transformational strategies and the implementation of relevant actions reflected in it. Sustainability transformation refers to the fundamental and systemic changes necessary to create a more sustainable and viable society, economy, and environment. Social transitions are not random, they arise from a specific set of conditions that interact in complex ways. Transitions occur when pressures in the socio-economic landscape (e.g. population growth, technological change, climate change) lead to the realization that existing socio-technical regimes (e.g. fossil fuel-based energy systems, mobility systems based on the private car, industrial fishing ) do not correspond to an understanding of potentially destructive pressures or does not respond to the achievement of a broader sustainability goal that did not exist before. Innovation strategies relate to the trajectory of change that leads from the current state of the system to the desired future state, where chronological stages are based on specific actions and related innovations. The research aims to determine the transformational pathways of the desired future vision by identifying the short, medium, and long-term stages and to show us the possibilities of introducing social and technological innovations in positive or negative aspects, using the method of retropolation and the three horizon framework. Research methodology: The research was carried out in the pilot area of the "Living Laboratory" (Batumi) established within the framework of the European Union "Horizon 2020" project: BRIDGE-BS and is based on the retropolation approach: based on data from the recent past or the current period, social, economic and political data of the past period Construction of process graphs. In addition, a combination of different methods was used in the research, at the initial stage a review of the existing scientific literature was carried out and the target group of the research was determined: representatives of the business, state, non-governmental and scientific /educational sectors in the city of Batumi, who at the previous meeting formed a vision of the desired future of 2050 and to achieve this vision in the mentioned research Short-term, medium-term and long-term goals were determined, social and technological innovations in the blue economy sectors: fisheries, aquaculture, maritime transport, environmental protection and environmental education were assessed, and the positive and negative aspects of these innovations were depicted on the canvas of three horizons using the three-horizon framework method.