North Aegean, Greece, with a population of 194,136, is the country’s poorest region with a GDP per capita at 42% of the EU-27 average. Unemployment is almost double the EU average, and although the primary sector accounts for 11.6% of total employment it has significantly declined in the past decades (from 18.8% in 2000). Environmental threats include land degradation, water scarcity, and climate change impacts. While local value chains are underdeveloped, CBE opportunities exist, mainly based on primary sector by-products, which accounted for 5.9% of total GVA in 2020 (4.8% at the national level). RIBES aims to boost CBE development by increasing synergies between primary, secondary, and tertiary sectors in two islands of the region.