The European Maritime Day (EMD) is the annual meeting point for Europe’s maritime community to network, discuss and forge joint action. The EMD 2017 conference and exhibition was held on 18-19 May 2017 in Poole. It was followed by the Poole Maritime Festival (15-21 May 2017), dedicated to engaging the general public and celebrating Poole and Dorset's local maritime heritage and environment.

EMD 2017 in Poole

Photos

EMD Conference: The main event of EMD is the European Maritime Day Conference, held in a different region with a different theme each year. The EMD Conference includes plenary and thematic sessions (with the participation of high level and key-experts) as well as workshops that are self-organised by interested stakeholders. The EMD conference regularly attracts more than 1000 maritime stakeholders for a unique, creative and motivating experience.

The future hosts of the European Maritime Day will be:

• Burgas, Bulgaria in 2018
• Lisbon, Portugal in 2019.

In its conclusions of June 2017, the Council of the European Union has announced the European Maritime Day (EMD) host cities for the period 2020-2024:

• Cork, Ireland will host EMD 2020;
• Den Helder, The Netherlands will host EMD 2021;
• Ravenna, Italy will host EMD 2022;
• Brest, France will host EMD 2023;
• Svendborg, Denmark will host EMD 2024.

The European Commission congratulates the host cities and looks forward to close and fruitful cooperation for the successful organisation of the events.

EMD headline themes

• Brussels 2008: "A regional approach to the implementation of Maritime Policy"
• Rome 2009: "Integrated Maritime Policy and the contribution of maritime clusters"
• Gijón 2010: "How to foster innovation?"
• Gdansk 2011: "Maritime Policy: Putting People First"
• Gothenburg 2012: "Sustainable Growth from the Oceans, Seas and Coasts"
• Valletta 2013: "Coastal Development and Sustainable Maritime Tourism"
• Bremen 2014: "Innovation driving Blue Growth"
• Piraeus 2015: "Ports and Coasts, Gateways to Maritime Growth"
• Turku 2016: "Investing in blue growth – smart and sustainable solutions"
• Poole 2017: "The Future of our Seas"