Articles
As part of the deliverables and overall communication strategy for the GreenSET project, a total of six articles will be developed and published over a period of 33 months. These articles are designed to enhance visibility, promote knowledge-sharing, and contribute meaningfully to the project’s overarching goals and mission, in alignment with Euro-Mediterranean communication guidelines.
Each article will be co-authored through a collaborative effort between two project partners, fostering cross-organizational cooperation and reflecting diverse perspectives within the GreenSET consortium. The themes of the articles will be closely tied to the key objectives of the project.
To ensure the broadest possible outreach and impact, the articles will be made publicly available and can be redistributed freely. When sharing or republishing, readers and platforms are encouraged to credit the GreenSET project website and the two partner organizations responsible for the creation of each article.
You can find the articles below.
GreenSET Articles Portfolio
Article 1: Service Innovation in Tourism: A Critical but Overlooked Sustainability Driver
Service Innovation in Tourism: A Critical but Overlooked Sustainability Driver
An article by GreenSET consortium partners (Nicosia Tourism Board and STEP RI)
I. Introduction: The Mediterranean’s Circular Imperative
The Mediterranean is a single connected system of coasts, seas, and hinterlands tied together by trade, energy, mobility, and culture. Its complexity also makes it vulnerable: the region faces warming, droughts, fires, floods, rising seas, overexploited resources, polluted ecosystems, and deepening inequalities, especially in seasonal coastal economies (Plan Bleu/SoED, 2020; EEA, 2020). These cumulative, cross-border pressures demand cooperation at scale.
Interreg Euro-MED was set up to address this, translating EU goals into missions on sustainable economy, natural heritage, green living areas, and tourism, with a focus on the circular economy (Interreg Euro-MED, 2023). Circularity is not a niche choice but a competitive strategy for service-driven economies like tourism, food, transport, and construction, where value depends on flows of materials, water, energy, and quality of experience (OECD, 2021).
EU policy provides the framework: the Circular Economy Action Plan aims to decouple growth from resource use, cut pollution, and create jobs (European Commission, 2020). Regional evidence underlines the urgency of shifting to a preventive, regenerative model (EEA, 2020). Interreg Euro-MED’s standards reinforce this with data-driven, place-based cooperation; pilots that close loops; and replicable solutions aligned with EU and Mediterranean frameworks.
In sum, circularity is the Mediterranean’s pragmatic path to resilience and prosperity—and the benchmark for the programme’s quality and impact.
II. Service Innovation: A Critical but Overlooked Lever
When we discuss circular transformation, the spotlight often falls on industries and products, such as recycling technologies, renewable energy infrastructure, or new materials. Yet, in the Mediterranean, where service-driven economies dominate, innovation in services is the decisive lever for change.
Eco-tourism, clean energy services, sustainable mobility solutions, and resilient regional food systems all have the potential to accelerate circularity. These are not marginal activities; they shape livelihoods, community resilience, and the region’s global positioning. However, service innovation remains underutilized. Efforts are too often fragmented, policies inconsistent, and regional strategies insufficiently coordinated. The result is that promising initiatives remain local and disconnected, rather than scaling across borders where their impact could be multiplied.
What is missing is a structured, Mediterranean-wide approach that helps services evolve into engines of sustainability. Here is where Mediterranean Sustainable Services Innovation Management (MEDSSIM) comes into play—a methodology specifically designed to address these systemic gaps and transform service innovation into a shared driver of circular development.
III. What is MEDSSIM?
MEDSSIM is a framework designed to equip the region with a common language and set of tools for circular service transformation.
At its core, MEDSSIM combines systems thinking, co-creation, and circularity evaluation tools to help regions move beyond isolated projects. It provides a structured but flexible pathway – a step-by-step, iterative process where organisations begin by mapping their resources and partners, then identify opportunities, design and test service concepts, and finally align business models for implementation and improvement.
Equally important, MEDSSIM is not a top-down blueprint. It is a participatory methodology that aligns policymakers, small and medium-sized enterprises, researchers, and local communities around a shared transformation agenda. Engaging diverse stakeholders in the same process helps bridge policy gaps, break down barriers, and foster regional coherence.
Ultimately, MEDSSIM offers more than a toolkit – it represents a mindset shift. Instead of treating services as secondary to industrial innovation, it places them at the heart of Mediterranean sustainability strategies, enabling the region to harness its strengths while addressing its vulnerabilities.
IV. Bringing MEDSSIM to Life Through GreenSET
GreenSET serves as the enabling toolkit that turns MEDSSIM’s methodology into practice. It equips Business Support Organisations (BSOs) and SMEs with structured processes to map service ecosystems, run co-design workshops, and support scenario planning that aligns business models with the principles of a circular economy.
Adaptable across tourism, fisheries, mobility, and urban services, GreenSET provides the tools to translate broad sustainability goals into actionable, community-based services. Its harmonized metrics and impact indicators allow regions to track progress, while its competence pack, best practices library, and certification scheme foster long-term capacity.
Most importantly, GreenSET builds transnational learning networks, enabling Mediterranean communities to exchange knowledge and scale proven solutions. By combining structure with flexibility, it ensures that circular transformation is not only initiated but embedded, positioning services as engines of resilience, competitiveness, and sustainability across the Mediterranean.
References:
•European Commission (2020) Circular Economy Action Plan: For a cleaner and more competitive Europe. Brussels: European Commission.
•European Environment Agency (EEA) (2020) State of the Environment Report 2020. Luxembourg: Publications Office of the EU.
•Interreg Euro-MED (2023) Programme Priorities and Missions. Available at: https://interreg-euro-med.eu (Accessed: 2 September 2025).
•OECD (2021) Circular Economy in Cities and Regions: Synthesis Report. Paris: OECD Publishing.
•Plan Bleu/SoED (2020) State of the Environment and Development in the Mediterranean. Marseille: Plan Bleu, UNEP/MAP.
All rights reserved. This text and the concepts described (MEDSSIM and GreenSET) are the intellectual property of the GreenSET Consortium.
Article 2 - GreenSET Service Accelerator and the role of Business Support Organizations in circular transformation of tourism SMEs
An article by GreenSET consortium partners (Sistema Iniziative Locali – Sinloc SpA and Foundation Business Start-Up Center Bar)
Structural Pressures on Tourism SMEs in the Adriatic Region
Tourism SMEs across the Adriatic area are under pressure to do two things at once: they must reduce their environmental impact while remaining competitive in a market shaped by seasonality, price sensitivity, and rapidly changing demand. The good news is that many solutions already exist. The challenge lies in making those solutions adoptable at scale, especially by micro and small companies with limited time, skills, and investment capacity. This is where Business Support Organizations (BSOs) become essential. When equipped with a shared methodology such as MEDSSIM (MED Sustainable Service Innovation Methodology), they provide the support infrastructure that turns sustainability from theory into day-to-day business practice.
Structural Barriers to Circular Transition in Mediterranean Tourism
GreenSET was designed to address a well-documented structural challenge in the Mediterranean tourism sector, where the majority of value is generated by small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and micro-businesses that often lack the internal capacity, technical expertise, and strategic resources to independently design and implement circular and resource-efficient services. Research shows that what constrains SME transformation is not a lack of awareness or isolated best practices, but rather the absence of coordinated support infrastructures, common methodologies, and practical implementation tools that can enable change at scale (Rizos et al., 2016; OECD, 2018). In this context, structured intermediary support mechanisms become critical for translating sustainability principles into operational improvements across SMEs
GreenSET as a process-based Service Accelerator
Rather than positioning itself as a label, GreenSET proposes a process accelerator that strengthens expert capability and safeguards methodological integrity. It is based on the understanding that long-term circular transformation in tourism depends on competent intermediaries—BSOs equipped with robust methods. Peer-to-peer exchange and hands-on project experience are essential to ensuring that advisors can effectively apply MEDSSIM in real business contexts. Building a network of capable experts across the Mediterranean region enables the framework to become scalable and transferable, allowing the same principles to be adopted by additional BSOs and sectors over time. Such intermediary-based transformation models align with OECD recommendations on strengthening SME support ecosystems (OECD, 2018).
Core principles of the GreenSET system
GreenSET is built on three simple but powerful principles: a clear improvement method, a structured mentoring process, and a strong business focus.
For BSOs, this means having a practical way to support SMEs — not occasionally or informally, but through a consistent and professional approach. The system strengthens the internal capacity of the BSO while improving the quality and reliability of the services delivered to tourism SMEs.
GreenSET is not a label or a certification. It is a working framework that helps organisations move from ideas to structured improvement.
From consultancy to mentoring: redefining the role of BSOs
The core objective is simple: helping SMEs improve in a structured and continuous way. GreenSET shifts the BSO role from that of trainer or consultant to that of mentor who guides SMEs to reflect on their current position and define how they will improve in the next cycle. The process follows a clear cycle: understanding the starting point, setting priorities, defining actions, and reviewing progress before moving to the next improvement step. This structured approach enables organizations to deliver reliable, comparable, and repeatable support, regardless of which staff member is involved.
Linking sustainability to business value
A further strength of the approach is that sustainability is always connected to business performance. Environmental improvements are translated into:
•cost optimisation,
•smarter use of energy and resources,
•stronger operational resilience,
•improved service quality,
•better positioning in an increasingly sustainability-oriented tourism market.
For tourism SMEs, sustainability becomes a strategic opportunity rather than an abstract objective. It supports competitiveness, strengthens reputation, and contributes to long-term stability in a highly seasonal and competitive sector
Institutional Capacity Building within BSOs
GreenSET does not only benefit SMEs — it also strengthens the BSO itself.
By integrating a structured methodology into their service portfolio, BSOs ensure that the quality of support does not depend on individual styles or experience levels, strengthening their institutional credibility and reinforcing their role as reliable partners for SMEs.
GreenSET as a capacity-building system for circular transition
In essence, GreenSET is not merely a tool for SMEs but a capacity-building system for BSOs. By equipping them with a clear and transferable methodology, it enables circular transformation to move from isolated examples to coordinated sector-wide change. Its real value lies not in recognition, but in delivering consistent, credible, improvement-oriented mentoring to SMEs —cycle after cycle. In doing so, GreenSET strengthens BSOs as institutions and reinforces their role as key partners in advancing SME growth and sustainability.
References:
- OECD. (2018). Strengthening SMEs and entrepreneurship for productivity and inclusive growth. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/9789264306264-en
- Rizos, V., Behrens, A., Kafyeke, T., Hirschnitz-Garbers, M., & Ioannou, A. (2016). The circular economy: Barriers and opportunities for SMEs. Journal of Cleaner Production, 112, 109–116. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.08.048
- European Commission. (2020). SME Strategy for a sustainable and digital Europe. Brussels.
- European Environment Agency. (2021). Circular economy in Europe — Developing the knowledge base. Copenhagen.
- OECD. (2018). Strengthening SMEs and Entrepreneurship for Productivity and Inclusive Growth. Paris.
All rights reserved. This text and the concepts described (MEDSSIM and GreenSET) are the intellectual property of the GreenSET Consortium.
Article 3 - Testing Circular Tourism Innovation Across the Mediterranean - GreenSET’s MEDSSIM pilots turn different SME challenges into shared lessons for sustainable tourism
An article by GreenSET consortium partners Tertúlia Algarvia (Portugal) and Tirana Regional Development Agency (Albania)
From a Local Challenge to a Stronger Tourism Offer
In Kruja, Albania, a boutique hotel has turned a simple challenge—how to encourage visitors to stay longer—into an opportunity to rethink its tourism offer. Albergo Diffuso Kruja has expanded beyond accommodation and panoramic dining by introducing a light snack bar, a branded ice-cream cart and improved luggage logistics, while cultural workshops and partnerships with local artisans enrich the visitor experience.
Average stays have grown from one to three nights, and the hotel is attracting more international groups.
What can happen when a tourism business looks beyond the service it already provides and asks a simple question: can we create something new, or improve what we already offer?
A Structured Pathway from Ideas to Action
This is the question that GreenSET is exploring through the MED Sustainable Service Innovation Methodology (MEDSSIM). Rather than providing a one-size-fits-all solution, MEDSSIM guides SMEs through a structured process to identify opportunities, develop or improve tourism services, test new concepts and connect them with circular and sustainable principles.
For businesses already accustomed to innovation, the value can be less about discovering the need to change and more about having a structured way to turn ideas into action.
The owner of Valza Boutique Hotel in Albania, another GreenSET pilot participant, explains: “We are always thinking about change and innovation in our business, but the MEDSSIM methodology gave us a structured process to explore and develop new tourism services.”
At Valza, this process supported the refinement of a retreat concept combining professional meetings with authentic local experiences. Flexible packages, outdoor working spaces and curated cultural activities helped the business strengthen its offer for international corporate groups and extend activity into the low season.
Making Circularity Part of the Tourism Experience
In Portugal, Bio Desafios developed “The Grocery to Table Lunch – Cooking Together”, combining shopping at its organic grocery with a shared cooking session and lunch.
The experience incorporates the measurement of food and water waste, turning resource efficiency into part of the service itself. Success is tracked against defined targets, demonstrating how circularity can become something that businesses can monitor rather than simply describe.
Also in the Algarve, Silêncio Místico created “Wild Algarve by Myself”, a self-guided ecotourism experience for small groups along lesser-known trails, including the Via Algarviana and Rota Vicentina.
The service relies on local partnerships and combines visitor experience with environmental monitoring, allowing the business to follow both its environmental footprint and indicators such as booking conversion and partner performance.
One Methodology Across Diverse Mediterranean Contexts
The first phase involved 29 participating SMEs across the nine partner countries, covering a wide range of tourism services and destinations. The pilots included adventure and heritage experiences, boutique accommodation, corporate retreats, ecotourism, digital services, gastronomy, cycling and slow tourism.
Each business started from its own resources, challenges and market opportunities while applying a common methodology.
This created a second level of innovation: innovation in the methodology itself.
A solution that is appropriate for one tourism business may not work in exactly the same way for another. Local resources, customer expectations, business capacity and destination characteristics all influence how a new service can be designed and implemented.
Testing MEDSSIM across different Mediterranean contexts therefore provided an opportunity to identify where the methodology was sufficiently flexible and where adaptation was needed.
From Local Experimentation to Transnational Learning
The value of GreenSET’s approach lies in this combination of local experimentation and transnational learning. The businesses test new ideas in their own environments, while the partnership can compare experiences across countries and use the lessons to refine the methodology and its supporting tools.
In this way, knowledge generated by one pilot can inform another rather than remaining isolated within a single destination.
Building on Pilot 1 and Preparing for Pilot 2
The lessons from participating SMEs are now feeding directly into the next phase. Based on the experience of Pilot 1, the GreenSET consortium is refining MEDSSIM and its supporting tools ahead of Pilot 2, while preparing for its wider application through Business Support Organisations across the Euro-MED region.
The next pilot will provide another opportunity to test, adapt and learn. The ambition is to develop a flexible approach that allows each business to innovate according to its own location, resources and opportunities, while ensuring that the lessons learned locally can contribute to a wider Mediterranean transition towards more sustainable and circular tourism.
All rights reserved. This text and the concepts described (MEDSSIM and GreenSET) are the intellectual property of the GreenSET Consortium. This article has been produced by GreenSET consortium partners Tertúlia Algarvia (Portugal) and Tirana Regional Development Agency (Albania). The GreenSET project is co-funded by the European Union in the framework of the Interreg Euro-MED Programme. The contents of this document are the sole responsibility of the authors and can under no circumstances be regarded as reflecting the position of the European Union.
