EuroSea project final meeting and symposium to Improve and Integrate European Ocean Observation and Forecasting System

The Canary Islands Ocean Platform (PLOCAN) has participated in the final meeting of the European Eurosea consortium “Improving and integrating the European Ocean Observing and Forecasting System”, to improve and integrate the European ocean observation systems in a global context, as well as the prediction models, convened at UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

Eurosea has worked towards two main objectives: to generate ocean observations and predictions that advance scientific knowledge about ocean climate, marine ecosystems and their vulnerability to human impacts, and to demonstrate how the ocean is an essential part of a healthy society and economically viable not only today but also for future decades.

Eurosea is a European project of the H2020 call with a duration of 50 months, with the participation of fifty-five partners, and its main objectives are to strengthen the current existing observation networks, integrating them as a single entity in the global context, improving the current design, the good disposition of the current ocean observation networks and prediction systems, generating data harmonization tools (FAIR) through the main European data aggregators and finally, generating observation and prediction services that adjust better to the needs demanded by society.

The final meeting took place in person on September 18 and 19 with a final symposium held on the 20th. The face-to-face meetings and the symposium were held at UNESCO headquarters in Paris. During the general assembly, the progress made during the project was discussed, evaluating the achievements achieved and discussing the best ways to continue improving the use of marine observations and their sustainability. During the symposium, important actors in the management of the responsible use of the planet’s resources were invited, such as the executive secretary of UNESCO, the director general for research and innovation of the European community, as well as the directors of the main participating institutions of the Eurosea consortium and other important actors in the world of science and the coordination of observation programs, participating with presentations and in debates where the need and sustainability of marine observations were discussed to face the moment of change and uncertainty that we are living with respect to the climate.

PLOCAN has participated by leading the activity of task 3.7 of the work package that directs the integration of existing observation networks and favors the creation of new networks for those platforms not yet associated. This activity has precisely managed to establish the lines of integration of the observation platforms known as autonomous surface vehicles (ASV), which are currently proving to be fundamental and multidisciplinary tools for ocean observation, generating essential data that allow to understand the exchange processes between the ocean and the atmosphere. PLOCAN also participated in the symposium with a roll-up and various videos of the activity carried out in the parallel exhibition that was prepared in the UNESCO hall for the enjoyment of the symposium participants.

The European Eurosea project has funding close to twelve million euros and has a website https://eurosea.eu/, with information on all aspects related to the project.


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