On October 16, the Leixões Cruise Terminal will host the closing ceremony of the largest investment in the history of the Portuguese footwear industry. Maria Coelho, coordinator of B2E CoLAB, will be part of the panel dedicated to opportunities in the blue bioeconomy.

The Portuguese footwear industry is preparing to take the “final step” in a transformative project. On October 16, the Leixões Cruise Terminal will host the final conference of BioShoes4All, an initiative promoted by APICCAPS and the Portuguese Footwear Technology Center (CTCP), as part of the Bioeconomy line of the Recovery and Resilience Plan (PRR).

With a total investment of €70 million and more than 70 partners involved, the BioShoes4All project has been structured around five strategic areas—Biomaterials, Eco-Friendly Footwear, Circular Economy, Advanced Production Technologies, and Training and Promotion—and aims to consolidate a resilient, innovative, and sustainable national production base.

Among the highlights of the program, which runs from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., is the panel “The sea: a horizon of possibilities,” scheduled for 4:00 p.m., which will address the intersection between the footwear industry and the blue bioeconomy. Maria Coelho, coordinator of B2E CoLAB, will be one of the guest speakers, alongside Manuela Pintado (Catholic University) and Filomena Brandão (IPB), moderated by Débora Sá, from Porto Canal.

The presence of B2E CoLAB reinforces the importance of research and innovation in the field of the blue bioeconomy, highlighting the role of the sea as a source of sustainable solutions for the future of the Portuguese footwear industry.

The event will also feature the participation of figures such as Luís Onofre (President of APICCAPS), Annika Breitfracht (European Commission), Maria José Ferreira (Coordinator of the BioShoes4All project), and will culminate with a speech by Prime Minister Luís Montenegro at the closing of the event.