The “Interconnected Nord-Est Innovation Ecosystem INEST” Spoke 8 activities, led by the University of Trieste, aims to develop research and technology transfer activities in the field of maritime, marine, and inland water technologies and sustainable and resilient water-land mobility planning. The project is structured around five research topics: (RT1) biology of marine ecosystems; (RT2) innovation in the management of physical and chemical risks and their impact on the hydrosphere; (RT3) innovation in sustainable coastal transport; (RT4) integrated land-sea maritime and spatial planning; (RT5) development of a Digital Twin of the Northern Adriatic. The integration of data, modeling analysis, AI algorithms, and visualization systems aims to facilitate access to information, providing a useful tool for decision-making support. Organized data flows, achieved knowledge, new instruments and methodologies pave the way for design and implementation of a next to come digital twin of a complex multi-dimensional open system, subject to ordinary and extraordinary drivers of change, as climatic change, namely the anthropized coastal area of upper Adriatic sea. The five research topics refer to knowledge and technological dimensions highly heterogenous but all relevant for developing blue economy in the specific coastal area. The technological advancements range from characterization of genetics of marine organisms of economic interest, to safeguarding of biodiversity of water systems, to forecast of effects on of sea level rise from climatic changes, to development of methods for planning of sustainable mobility and use of coastal areas, and much more.