RED ICTS - MARINAS - Infraestructuras Científicas y Tecnológicas Singulares

Long-term time-series datasets from the marine environment are of critical importance to facilitate:

• Better understanding of ocean, earth and climate system processes;
•  Monitoring the rate and scale of environmental change;
• Detection of hazards and events;
• Effective policy making for the sustainable management of seas and oceans.

The 2nd Marine Board Forum will bring together scientists, policy makers and stakeholders to discuss critical gaps and opportunities for the long-term monitoring of Europe’s marine environment. It will identify the scientific and policy actions necessary to achieve an integrated network of marine observatories around Europe’s coasts and seas, which will form a critical component of the extended observational infrastructure and of the EMODNET.

The Forum will address the following questions:

• What role do marine observatories play in the provision of long-term (decadal-scale) time series data from European seas?
• What are the technical challenges for an effective interoperability between systems, new observational capabilities and improved data management?
• What observatories and projects are currently in place and what are the critical gaps in coverage and measurements?
• How can sustained funding schemes, new partnerships and innovative governing structures be designed to best support a stable observatory network?

Forum Vision Statement

The Forum will deliver a Vision Statement including high-level recommendations in support of a European network of long-term marine observatories.

Who should attend?

European and National policy makers/advisors and programme managers, marine scientists, industry and NGOs.

Venue: Auditorium Maria Baers, Martelaarsplein 7, 1000 Brussels, Belgium

Registration: Free of charge, before 16 July 2010 OPEN (download attendance form)