First consortium meeting of the “Quadruple Helix-Based Enhancement of Stakeholders at Black Sea Territory - QUEST” project, prepared by the Technology Transfer Application and Research Center of Karadeniz Technical University (KTÜ TTM) and the Trabzon Chamber of Commerce and Industry (TTSO), with Karadeniz Technical University (KTÜ) as a project partner and TTSO as the lead partner, was held on October 30, 2025, hosted by TTSO. The project is funded under the Black Sea Basin Cross-Border Cooperation Programme (Interreg NEXT Black Sea Basin Programme).

The aim of the QUEST Project is to enhance the existing capacities of stakeholders—particularly those focusing on the blue economy—in partner countries to benefit from national and international funding programmes. This goal is intended to be achieved through various activities designed to strengthen institutional capacities and build sustainable partnerships.

The meeting was attended by the project teams of the consortium partners, including Technology Transfer Application and Research Center of Karadeniz Technical University, the Project Coordination Office of the Trabzon Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Union of Bulgarian Black Sea Local Authorities, and Organisation for Local Development ANATOLIKI SA.

Through presentations delivered during the meeting, activities carried out since the project’s inception were reviewed, while topics such as stakeholder matchmaking processes, training modules, and clustering structures were discussed. An active exchange of ideas took place among the partners, during which expectations for the upcoming period were shared, and initial preparations for forthcoming activities were put on the agenda.