GIC attended a project kick-off meeting for the EU’s Horizon consortium called INSPIRE (Innovative Solutions for Plastic Free European Rivers) at the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) in Oostende, Belgium on 27th – 28th June. The meeting consisted of 26 EU partners and AIT (only non-EU partner) aiming for drastic macro and micro-plastic pollution reduction in European rivers.

The consortium focused on three main conceptual activities related to plastic pollution: DETECTION, COLLECTION, and PREVENTION for the European rivers by bringing together 20 technologies and actions. GIC research specialist, Dr. Kittiphon Boonma, participated in the pertinent Work-package meetings, ensuring communication regarding our roles and contributions towards the project’s main objective.

During the meeting, Dr. Kittiphon highlighted GIC-AIT’s pioneering technology, pLitter, as a potential element of a modular masterplan of INSPIRE. pLitter is an AI-enabled CCTV solution for plastic litter monitoring using land-based and airborne sensors. The significant advantages of tacking plastic pollution with citizen science and being replicable at multiple sites on a broader scale are immensely valuable and widely impressed to various esteemed institutions throughout Europe. pLitter’s contribution was well established GIC role as a meaningful impact of addressing plastic issues to INSPIRE’s goals.

Related links:

INSIPRE Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/inspire.eu 

INSPIRE Website: https://inspire-europe.org/ 

pLitter platform: https://plitter.org/home/