Overview   Global

IMDIS 2026 will take place in Split, Croatia, from 30 November to 3 December 2026, organised by the Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries (IOF) in collaboration with SeaDataNet AISBL, IFREMER, MARIS, NOC and INGV, many of whom are long-standing EMODnet partners. The conference will bring together experts from across the marine data community to showcase advances in data infrastructures, interoperable systems, tools and platforms, and the transformation of marine data into knowledge and decision-support products.

The World Conference on Marine Biodiversity (WCMB) 2026 will take place from 17–20 November 2026 in Bruges, Belgium, with organisation led by the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ). This flagship global event will gather scientists, policymakers, and stakeholders to explore the latest research, innovations, and solutions for marine biodiversity observations, data, conservation and sustainable ocean management. The Call for Abstracts is open until 17 March 2026 (23:59 CET), and registration is now available via the WCMB 2026 registration portal, with early-bird rates valid until 18 June 2026. Find all submission details and updates on the WCMB 2026 website.

The call for abstracts for the World Conference on Marine Biodiversity 2026 (WCMB 2026) is now open until 17 March 2026. Researchers, practitioners, and policymakers are invited to submit abstracts across the conference themes, including a dedicated EMODnet session focused on “Science that makes a difference: supporting knowledge-based policies.” This session will explore how marine knowledge and data can better inform policy and decision-making processes. Find out more and submit an abstract: Call for abstracts: https://www.wcmb2026.org/call-abstracts
EMODnet session: https://www.wcmb2026.org/6-science-makes-difference-supporting-knowledge-based-policiesTitle: EGI Conference 2026: Advancing Digital Infrastructure for Science and Innovation

The 7th edition of the World Conference on Marine Biodiversity (WCMB 2026) takes place in Bruges, Belgium, from 17 to 20 November 2026, organised by the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ). Held roughly midway through the UN Ocean Decade, the conference brings together scientists, policymakers and stakeholders to discuss the state of marine biodiversity and identify what still needs to be tackled by the end of the Decade.

EMODnet Biology will organise a three-day Data Management training workshop for Black Sea data providers from 28 to 30 October 2026 in Constanța, Romania. The course will focus on preparing and standardising marine biological datasets using Darwin Core, supporting their publication in EMODnet Biology. Researchers and data managers are invited to bring their own datasets and contribute to improving data availability for the Black Sea region.

The call for challenges for Ocean Hackathon® 2026 is now open, inviting innovators, researchers, and organisations to shape the future of the blue economy. EMODnet Secretariat's Angeliki Karampourouni and Matteo Mikos co-presented EMODnet's service offer at the online warm-up sessions in April ahead of the event taking place from 16–18 October 2026 across multiple locations worldwide. The hackathon will bring together multidisciplinary teams to transform marine data into practical, prototype solutions addressing ocean sustainability and real-world needs. Submit your challenge before 30 May.

On the morning of 5 and 6 October 2026, EMODnet Biology will host a workshop to help EU-funded biodiversity projects ensure their outputs become available via EMODnet Biology. The sessions will provide guidance on biodiversity data standards and product creation, and discuss how project outputs can feed into the EMODnet Biology service.

The EDITO Data Lake has achieved a major milestone, with EMODnet datasets now seamlessly integrated through fully automated synchronisation. This ensures continuous access to the latest available, trusted in situ marine data from EMODnet throughout the EDITO ecosystem, enhancing accessibility and interoperability of Europe’s marine data.

EMODnet welcomes two new Associated Partners to its network. The Dutch-based recreational diver platform DIVR, and IZTECH, the Izmir Institute of Technology in Turkey, bringing new, diverse, data including biodiversity and multi-parametric coastal observations to the EMODnet service, together with new stakeholder communities from citizen science to coastal engineering and modelling communities.

Explore new projections using the Size Spectrum Dynamic Bioclimate Envelope Model (SS-DBEM) of relative biomass change for 18 fish species across the North Atlantic under a high-emissions future (RCP 8.5) and sustainable fishing pressure (F/Fmsy = 1.0). Combining outputs from three biogeochemical models, this dataset reveals where species may gain or lose biomass between 2030 and 2100, offering a long-term perspective on climate-driven spatial shifts in marine ecosystems and fisheries resources.

A new dataset provides a decade of phytoplankton observations from Romanian Black Sea waters, collected between 2006 and 2015 by the National Institute for Marine Research and Development “Grigore Antipa” (NIMRD). The dataset includes more than 24,000 occurrence records and 170,000 associated measurements and is now available through the interconnected EMODnet Biology, EurOBIS and OBIS services.

In July 2026, in Vienna, EMODnet Chemistry celebrated the launch by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) of a common platform for collecting data on global plastics monitoring. The evidence-based information on the abundance and impact of marine plastic pollution will also contribute to the Global Partnership on Marine Litter, a multi-stakeholder initiative led by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), bringing together all actors working on the prevention and reduction of marine litter and plastic pollution. EMODnet Chemistry's experience in marine litter data management supports both IAEA’s and UNEP’s initiatives.

A newly published paper in Frontiers in Ocean Sustainability presents the multi-level quality control framework developed within EMODnet Chemistry to validate eutrophication-related data (nutrients, chlorophyll and oxygen) across European seas. The paper describes how data originators, data managers and regional coordinators apply three successive levels of quality control, combining automated checks with expert validation, to produce harmonised, FAIR-compliant datasets that support policies such as the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD).

Building on the June 2026 launch of the European OceanEye communication, EMODnet provided expert input to European Commission calls for evidence to help shape the future Ocean and Water Research and Innovation (R&I) Strategy. EMODnet supports the integration of the Ocean R&I Strategy and Water Resilience R&I Strategy for a more holistic approach, with EMODnet’s service evolution expanding at the land-sea interface, also providing ongoing expert advice on (meta)data interoperability for the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive, Water4All Partnership, among others.

EMODnet welcomes the launch of the UN Ocean Decade’s call for Decade Actions (11/2026). Organisations are invited to submit proposals for new Decade Projects and Decade Contributions. Applications are open until 31 August 2026. Apply for the open calls and for more information visit the UN Ocean Decade Webpage.

The UN Ocean Decade has published a new discussion paper, “Ocean Data Sharing and National Security”, examining how governments, research institutions, industry, defence stakeholders and data managers can maximise the benefits of ocean data sharing while addressing legitimate national security concerns. The paper aims to support informed dialogue and the development of practical recommendations for the ocean data community. Stakeholders are invited to contribute their perspectives through an online survey, helping to shape future guidance on this important topic. EMODnet supports the principle of making marine data “as open as possible, as restricted as necessary”, ensuring broad data accessibility while recognising justified security-related limitations. The survey is open until the end of September 2026. Read the discussion paper. Have your say in the survey.

The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO has released the third edition of the "Global Ocean Science Report: Investing in Sustainable Ocean Solutions" executive summary, offering the most comprehensive assessment of ocean science worldwide to date. The summary examines not only how ocean knowledge is generated, but also how it is shared, applied and transformed into societal benefits. EMODnet experts have contributed to the latest GOSR, with the executive summary having been published, with more to come. Read the Executive Summary.

On 23 April, the European Commission launched a public consultation to help shape the European Ocean Act, following an earlier call for evidence in January 2026. Open until 16 July, this questionnaire invites stakeholders to share their views, including those from public authorities and administrations, experts, citizens, and coastal communities. Find out more

The United Nations 2026 Water Conference, dedicated to accelerating action on SDG 6 (clean water and sanitation), will take place from 8 to 10 December 2026 in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, co-hosted by the UAE and Senegal. The conference has an open call for in-person side events, offering an opportunity to showcase how ocean and marine data services such as EMODnet contribute to the wider water and sustainability agenda. More information.

On 15 June 2026, the European Commission launched two calls for evidence to shape its future Ocean and Water Research and Innovation (R&I) Strategy, due to be adopted by the end of 2026. One call covers ocean priorities such as marine ecosystem protection, ocean observation and the blue economy; the other addresses freshwater resilience and efficiency. Both are open until 2 August 2026 via the Commission's "Have Your Say" portal.
Read more here
Have your say — Ocean R&I call
Have your say — Water resilience R&I call