Tech Without Borders: Digital Innovation Across the Green Line

On 27 November 2025, the panel event Tech Without Borders: Digital Innovation Across the Green Line was held at the Goethe-Institut, Nicosia, bringing together entrepreneurs, academics, tech professionals, students, and innovation ecosystem actors from across Cyprus. Organized by Dr. Kemal Haşim and Dr. Şebnem Çoban (Eastern Mediterranean University), the event focused on how digital technologies—particularly AI and Blockchain—can foster collaboration, trust, and shared action in politically divided and extreme contexts.

Supported by ECSB, UNFICYP, CyprusInno, and CYENS Centre of Excellence, the event attracted more than 60 participants, reflecting strong interest in the role of digital innovation as a bridge in divided societies.

Setting the Scene: Innovation in a Divided Context

Cyprus’s political division and the related extreme situation continue to create challenges and influence everyday entrepreneurial activity, from access to markets and networks to regulatory and institutional constraints. Tech Without Borders used Cyprus as a concrete case to explore how entrepreneurs, institutions, and communities navigate fragmentation and constraints through innovation.

The event brought together start-ups, intercommunal initiatives, and academic researchers to encourage exchange across sectors and communities and offer a comprehensive view of how digital ecosystems evolve in extreme contexts, how technology can enable cooperation beyond physical, institutional, and social boundaries.

Session 1: Insights from Digital Start-ups

Moderator: Dr. Bakiye Yalınç (Eastern Mediterranean University)

The first session focused on the experiences of digital start-ups operating across the island, addressing both the challenges and opportunities of building and running tech ventures in an extreme context.
Panellists Kleanthis Neokleous (CYENS), Maria Terzi (Malloc), and Özgü Taçyıldız (Analiz Systems) discussed the services they offer and their roles within the wider entrepreneurial ecosystem—ranging from fostering innovation to driving organizational and societal change through introducing new practices, tools, and ways of working.

A central theme was how emerging technologies, particularly AI and Blockchain, are transforming entrepreneurial activities and everyday business operations in Cyprus. Panellists reflected on how AI can be integrated into small businesses and start-ups, highlighting benefits such as efficiency, scalability, and supporting decision-making, while also noting challenges related to cost, skills, and ethical considerations. The discussion also explored how AI and digital innovation can help address market gaps, support inclusion, and enable cross-community collaboration and peacebuilding in divided contexts. Start-ups emphasized their potential role as ecosystem builders, capable of introducing innovative solutions that contribute to sustainable growth and long-term resilience.

Session 2: Insights from Intercommunal Organizations

Moderator: Mustafa Öngün (UNFICYP)

The second session examined the role of intercommunal platforms and organizations that actively support collaboration and innovation across the Green Line.

Panellists Burak Doluay (SocialTech Lab – CyprusInno), Assist. Prof. Dr. Christos Ioannou (CYENS), Hasan Tabakci (EUnite), and Steven Stavrou (SocialTech Lab – CyprusInno) talked about the missions and visions of their organizations and discussed how these initiatives contribute to the development of Cyprus’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

Discussions focused on how intercommunal organizations foster innovation, intercommunal cooperation, and drive change by supporting initiatives such as cross-border commerce, shared digital infrastructure, and trustworthy digital ecosystems. Panellists highlighted the importance of building connected, intelligent, inclusive, and transparent platforms that reduce fragmentation, build trust, and lower barriers to cooperation.

They also mentioned the value of participating in intercommunal rather than mono-communal settings and supporting SMEs and start-ups across the Green Line, particularly in terms of access to diverse networks, learning opportunities, and trust-building at the community level. Live demonstrations of organizations such as CyprusInno, EUnite, and CYENS illustrated how digital tools can be used to enable joint action and collaboration in divided contexts.

Session 3: Insights from Academics and Researchers

Moderator: Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nazife Dimililer (Eastern Mediterranean University)

The final session brought an academic perspective to the discussion, focusing on how academic research can inform and be informed by entrepreneurial activity in extreme contexts.

Panellists Prof. Cem Tanova (Cyprus International University), Assoc. Prof. Dr. Burak Erkut (Eastern Mediterranean University), Dr. Alexander Apostolides (European University Cyprus), and MSc Gülsu Tecer (CYENS) shared their current research on topics such as entrepreneurship in extreme contexts, digital transformation, the digital divide across the Green Line, digital identity and payment systems, search and market platforms, and the role of AI and innovation infrastructures in enabling cross-community collaboration. The discussion addressed how emerging digital technologies can overcome fragmentation and reshape entrepreneurial landscapes at the micro (entrepreneurs and SMEs), meso (community), and macro (ecosystem) levels. Panellists reflected on how entrepreneurs cope with institutional, physical, and social boundaries through strategies of adaptation, resilience, and innovation.

Additional reflections focused on how academic research can become more relevant and impactful for local entrepreneurs, including pathways for commercialization, applied research, and collaboration with ecosystem actors. The session also explored future research directions, comparative studies with other divided societies, and the skills and competencies needed for the next generation of entrepreneurs and researchers.

Reflections and Impact

Tech Without Borders demonstrated the power of dialogue, collaboration, and digital innovation in addressing complex societal and contextual challenges. By bringing together start-ups, academics, institutions, and practitioners, the event enabled meaningful exchanges between theory and practice.
Beyond knowledge-sharing, the event created opportunities for new partnerships, research collaborations, and ecosystem connections. It supported the idea that entrepreneurship in extreme contexts can serve both economic and social purposes, contributing to inclusion, trust-building, and long-term cooperation.

As Cyprus continues to experience its divided reality, initiatives like Tech Without Borders highlight how technology can go beyond borders—supporting innovation, inclusion, resilience, and collaboration across communities.

Authors: Dr. Kemal Haşim and Dr. Şebnem Çoban (Eastern Mediterranean University)