Building the conditions for digital transition in the blue economy requires more than access to technology. It demands organisations capable of translating strategic objectives into concrete opportunities for cooperatives and SMEs working on the ground. Rosario Coronado at COCETA, the Spanish Confederation of Worker-Owned Cooperatives, brings to the Bluedots project a deep grounding in cooperative governance, capacity development, and the practical realities of social economy enterprises navigating structural change.
COCETA is Spain’s main confederation of worker-owned cooperatives, representing thousands of enterprises across sectors and regions. Its work spans cooperative governance, labour market development, capacity building, and sectoral policy — always with an emphasis on accompanying member organisations through change in ways that reinforce, rather than compromise, their cooperative identity and values.
Within the Bluedots consortium, COCETA plays a coordinating and intermediary role: managing the visibility and evaluation of Living Lab participation, identifying good practices, and ensuring that the cooperatives in their network can genuinely benefit from what the project offers. In this interview, Rosario Coronado reflects on what it means to act as a bridge between a European innovation project and the enterprises it is designed to serve, and on what the Málaga Living Lab revealed about the state of digital readiness in Spain’s blue economy.
COCETA’s role in Bluedots combines implementation management, network activation, and cross-sector collaboration. How do you understand that role, and what does it mean in practice for the cooperatives and SMEs you work with?
Our organisation’s role within the project is to manage its implementation so that all activities are carried out successfully, ensuring that the participating entities can make the most of the tools and resources that Bluedots offers. Regarding the Living Labs, for example, we are responsible for their promotion and visibility, for managing and evaluating applications to participate, for accompanying the cooperatives in our network that wish to take part, and for identifying good practices to be shared during these events. In this sense, we serve as a bridge between what the project offers and the organisations interested in benefiting from it.
Beyond coordination, COCETA plays a central role in reducing the gap between the traditional social economy and the digital future of the blue sector. We act as a catalyst for innovation and capacity development, ensuring that cooperatives and SMEs in the social economy have the necessary tools and networks to lead a sustainable transition, driving digital adoption, modernising work practices, promoting cross-sector collaboration, and strengthening transnational cooperation.
In short, our organisation acts as a local engine for a global vision, transforming the project’s strategic objectives into practical and sustainable opportunities for cooperatives and SMEs.
The Living Labs are designed as spaces for experimentation, peer learning, and cross-sector exchange. What shifts are you observing among participating SMEs, in mindset, in digital practices, or in how they approach collaboration?
Thanks to the Living Labs, ideas for new projects are emerging, as well as potential collaborative partnerships and opportunities to discuss local issues and challenges that are shared at the European level.
Living Labs, such as the one recently held in Italy, are proving to be a transformative platform for SMEs in the social and blue economy. A clear shift in mindset can be observed, from traditional business models towards ones much more focused on sustainable innovation, resilience, and inclusion. Participating SMEs and cooperatives are increasingly adopting a vision in which the responsible use of marine resources and equitable management are key pillars of their competitiveness. These spaces have helped build trust and foster an atmosphere of co-creation.
Regarding digital practices, there is a growing interest in integrating advanced solutions, blockchain for seafood traceability, for instance, alongside a renewed commitment to capacity building, both in transversal digital skills and in those specific to the blue sector. As for collaboration models, intersectoral and transnational cooperation is becoming increasingly important.
Finally, through the business speed dating organised within the Living Labs, an ecosystem is being consolidated in which the exchange of best practices among peers from different European countries acts as a genuine driver for the sustainable growth of the sector.
In May 2025, COCETA hosted the Bluedots Spain Living Lab in Málaga, bringing together public institutions, industry, and civil society around the question of how digitalisation can enable the blue economy to flourish. What did that experience teach you about digital transition in the sector?
The collaboration during the Spain Living Lab in Málaga highlighted that the digital transition within the blue economy is not only about implementing technology, but also about encouraging cross-sector cooperation and knowledge transfer among public institutions, industry, the social economy, and civil society.
This experience showed that, for the blue economy to advance, digital tools must be accessible, affordable, and adaptable to the realities of social economy SMEs and workers’ cooperatives. At the same time, the networking that takes place during the Living Labs is demonstrating that innovation can be driven by direct interaction and the building of trust. The Málaga event also underscored the need for continuous training to reduce the digital skills gap, both in transversal competencies and in those specifically related to the blue economy sector.
The landscape of the blue economy in Spain is being transformed through an innovation ecosystem that brings together technology and sustainability. One of the concrete examples showcased in Málaga was Futuralga S. Coop., which uses advanced biotechnology to transform algae into sustainable fruit and vegetable packaging, offering alternatives to conventional plastics. Examples like these demonstrate that integrating technological solutions is essential to creating more competitive and sustainable business models, and that it is already happening.