To reduce its employees’ reliance on private vehicles when commuting or travelling on business, the port authority of Valencia (Spain) is working on a new business travel plan. The port is committed to a zero emissions strategy, and wants to offer staff alternative mobility options, in a move it hopes will help it meet its targets. An internal survey asked employees about the modes of transport they currently use and invited them to suggest ideas that would enable them to avoid using their own car. By promoting a modal shift, the port hopes to cut employees’ car journeys – and the resulting CO2 emissions – by 15%. The port aims to come up with concrete measures within six months.

A new park is set to be created on the edge of the Masshaven dock basin by 2028. The site is located in the city-port interface zone, between Wilhelminapier, where Rotterdam (Netherlands) port authority has its headquarters, and the old cereal terminal’s grain silos. The district is undergoing a process of urban regeneration after a public survey was carried out in 2019, with a total of 900 contributions received. The survey’s findings helped to shape the instructions given to the design team commissioned to plan the park. These identified several priority requirements, including waterfront sport and leisure facilities, the need to celebrate the port’s maritime history, and biodiversity, as the estuary is home to a number of endemic species.

An iconic piece of local port heritage, the “consigne sanitaire” is a historic building dating from 1719, which stands at the foot of Fort Saint-Jean in the old port district of Marseilles (France). A €1.2 million plan was recently unveiled to convert the building into a third place (a space that facilitates social interaction) dedicated to maritime culture and the budding blue economy. The port of Marseilles has now signed an occupancy agreement with a local cultural non-profit organisation, paving the way for the site to host meetings, training courses and cultural activities from the end of 2023. A section of the 400 m² building will be used to educate visitors about maritime culture and activities, while there will also be a co-working space.

The City of Cape Town has made the Zandvlei draft Estuarine Management Plan (EMP) available for public comment until the 30^th of November. The Zandvlei estuary is the point where the Zandvlei meets the False Bay ocean and is surrounded by urban suburbs and has been highly modified. Therefore, the EMP must be updated every 5 years to ensure that it is conserved from ecological, social, and economical perspectives. The revised EMP includes short- and long-term management priorities such as protecting the marine and waterbird habitats, reducing sewage spills, and enabling recreational and educational uses on the water and the waterfront. By providing their input, immediate community can directly influence their local access to a clean and healthy estuary.

It is well known that September and October are the preferred months to celebrate port culture in many places. In Southern Europe, many port authorities are opening their ports to citizens during these weeks with rich cultural programs. In Palma (Spain), the port hosted its first edition of the Open Door Days on the 30^th of September, with music, port visits, conferences, sports and children’s workshops, among other things. In Lisbon (Portugal), the Port Authority celebrates the 136^th anniversary of the port with a month-long program, including activities like rowing, navigating the river in historic ships, or visiting port facilities. Another example is the 2^nd period of the Italian Port Days. The national initiative is replicated in several ports with intense programs including port visits, exhibitions, conferences, and concerts. Some initiatives are very original, such as the sunrise concert in Taranto (starting at 6:30 in the morning), a beach clean-up day in Livorno or a sea-focused theatre in Venice.