Blue Economy Innovation Program
Sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, while preserving the health of ocean ecosystems and the communities which depend on them.
What is the Blue Economy?
The blue economy comprises economic activity related to the ocean, seascapes, coastlines, intertidal regions, and connected coastal watersheds. According to the World Bank (2017), the blue economy is the sustainable use of ocean resources for economic growth, improved livelihoods and jobs, while preserving the health of ocean ecosystems. NC State is rapidly becoming poised to be a leader in fueling resilient and sustainable growth in next-generation maritime technologies (bluetech) and economies.
NC State’s award-winning Blue Economy Innovation Program (BEIP) started in August 2020 as a working group to garner the ideas and expertise of NC State students, staff, and faculty and foster innovation and entrepreneurship. In February 2023, the Blue Economy Innovation Program was formalized within the Coastal Resilience and Sustainability Initiative (CRSI), appointing Dr. Chris Osburn as Director. In March 2024, the BEIP received the Innovation and Impact Award from NC State’s Sustainability Council. In March 2025, along with the CRSI, the BEIP was merged into the Climate and Sustainability Academy.
The BEIP has three main activities designed to promote the blue economy at NC State and with local and regional partners.
Promoting the Blue Economy through Innovation
Annual Workshop
In 2021, the “Creating Solutions for the Global Blue Economy” inaugural workshop (hosted at Carteret Community College) brought together entrepreneurs and knowledge experts with NC State undergraduate and graduate students to inspire innovation and entrepreneurship. This effort, led by Dr. Osburn, has attracted the interest of incubators, like First Flight Venture Center and Sea-Ahead, Inc., to help catalyze ideas generated by students into potential entrepreneurial endeavors. With generous support from NC State and external sponsors, the workshop remains free to undergraduate and graduate students. The workshop continues to be a core component of introducing the blue economy to the Wolfpack community.
Innovation Course
A blue economy course at NC State is offered through the Department of Marine, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences. MEA 439 / 539* Interdisciplinary Innovation in the Blue Economy is offered every fall and is open both to undergraduate (sophomores to seniors) and graduate students and expands upon the workshop, which takes place concurrently in the fall semester. There is no prerequisite and the course is open to all majors! (*Listed as MEA 493/593 Special Topics in Marine Science for Fall 2025)
Networking and Mentoring
The third goal of the BEIP is to engage and leverage partnerships with various NC State units, including the Center for Marine Science and Technology (CMAST), the KIETS Climate Leaders Program, Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Center for Geospatial Analytics, the Center for Environmental Economics and Policy, and the Data Science Academy. These partnerships provide abundant resources for mentoring students interested in the blue economy.
The BEIP also is building networks to NC Sea Grant, the NC State Climate Office, and the Southeast Climate Adaptation Science Center, as well as NC’s Renewable Ocean Energy Program. Outside of NC State, the BEIP partners with Carteret Community College, Stardust Startups, UNC-Chapel Hill’s Institute of the Environment, UNC-Wilmington’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and others on initiatives and events to build a larger blue economy innovation ecosystem in North Carolina.
These collaborative efforts position NC State at the forefront of advancing the blue economy, driving sustainable innovation, and creating opportunities for future generations.
Student Successes
The BEIP is proud to highlight recent successes of students who have been part of the program and are working towards innovations for a more sustainable blue economy!
- Reid Barnett – Founder of Ceretune, LLC, has won the Collegiate Competition prize at OceanExchange in October 2024 and the Pitch Prize at EarthX in March 2025
- Nathan Daughtry – Founder of WaveSafe Maritime Solutions was a recipient of the 2025 NC State Innovation and Entrepreneurship Force Multiplier Award
- Dylan Gretok – Founder of Seagull Sustainability led a Sustainable Futures Fellows team to develop alternative plastics based on seaweed. Dylan was recently accepted into the Mercedes-Benz beVisioneers fellow program.
- Kelly Fawcett and Libby Ivory – both were recipients of the Stardust Startups NC Coastal Idea Challenge! Kelly’s innovation was “Little Free Beach Box” and Libby’s was “Albatross Aerobotics”
Upcoming Events
October 24-25, 2025
Blue Economy Workshop Fall 2025
Applications open August 2025.
Blue Economy Workshop Fall 2025
Applications open August 2025.
The 5th Annual Creating Solutions for the Global Blue Economy Workshop will be held on October 24-25, 2024 on the CMAST campus.
This workshop is linked with MEA 493/591 Interdisciplinary Innovation in the Blue Economy, open to undergraduate and graduate students for Fall 2025 at NC State University.
Applications for the Blue Economy workshop will open in August 2025.
News and Updates
NC State’s Blue Economy Innovation Program has developed the NC’s Blue Economy Report in collaboration with NC State’s Social Innovation Fellows and UNC Wilmington’s Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (All Blue). The report provides a comprehensive overview of the blue economy, detailing its challenges, proposing solutions, and highlighting current events and efforts within North Carolina. We encourage you to share this report within your network, on social media, your website, newsletters, etc., as we aim to reach a broad audience and spread this important information widely.
Stay in the Loop!
Want to be notified whenever we have exciting news or important updates? Sign up for the Blue Economy Listserv here.
You will receive periodic emails with announcements and notices about BEIP activities including the annual “Creating Solutions for the Global Blue Economy” workshop.
The BEIP was honored to receive an NC State Sustainability Award for Innovation and Impact!
The BEIP was noted in a recent video for NC State Innovation and Entrepreneurship that also featured Social Innovation Fellows who worked with us last year and will lead a blue economy webinar series starting this fall!
Dr Alice Hill: The Insurance industry is the retreating canary in the CLIMATE coal mine
LJ Palmer-Moloney (Stardust Startups) shared this short video from Dr. Alice Hill on climate resilience and insurance. Innovations are certainly needed here.
Article Related to 2023 BEIP Workshop Panel
Coastal Review has a nice article related to our 2023 workshop panel with boat captains David Berrane and Chris Kimrey and shellfish grower Mark Hooper. In that discussion, our panelists noted that keen competition in the recreational fishing industry promotes the maximum possible catch, but also that successful fishing often results in a lot of valuable fish getting thrown out (with or without freezer burn).
Now, this article is mostly about fish preparation methods but it is a good reminder that such notes to clients can form the basis of a larger discussion on conservation. Appealing to a sense of “waste not, want not” compliments quite nicely emphasizing the various and creative ways you can enjoy your catch.
As we work to develop a sustainable and equitable blue economy in NC and beyond, these types of panel discussions are critical. Thanks much again to David, Chris, and Mark for their participation!
Water crisis: how local technologies can help solve a global problem
From the journal, Nature: Climate change is making water stress worse for billions worldwide. Scaling up both new and traditional solutions must be a priority.