European Marine Observation and Data Network | EMODnet

EMODnet formally kicked off its Vision 2035 activities in April 2024 with the first meeting of the EMODnet Vision 2035 Drafting Group, which is coordinating a Vision to 2035 of EMODnet’s service evolution. The Group consists of representatives from all EMODnet thematics, data ingestion, central portal and Secretariat, also including Sea-basin Checkpoint Coordinators, EMODnet Associated Partners and key actors from the EU and Global stakeholder community. A key input to the Vision 2035 will be a public consultation, planned for launch in early summer 2024, open to all. Stay tuned to have your say in EMODnet’s future evolution!

On 29-30 April 2024 the EMODnet Steering Committee (SC) met online for its 20th meeting. The open session was attended by diverse representatives of the EC and EU agencies, including CINEA, EC DG MARE, DEFIS, ENV, RTD, JRC, and the European Environment Agency (EEA), with a dedicated discussion on EMODnet for EU Policy, Chaired by Rémy Denos, EC DG MARE. EMODnet thematic and data ingestion Coordinators together with the Central Portal technical team presented the latest EMODnet offer and ongoing developments. The closed session included operational discussions, including planning for the next EMODnet hackathon ‘Open Sea Lab 4.0’ (more news to follow).

The University of Malta hosted the kick-off meeting for the new phase of EMODnet Ingestion, welcoming around 45 partners to discuss the project's progress and plan its next steps. The gathering was an opportunity for stakeholders to review the challenges encountered, celebrate achievements, and outline the future direction for EMODnet Ingestion, one of the key components of the EMODnet network.

This year colleagues from NIMRD, Romania hosted the EMODnet Biology annual meeting. The meeting took place over two days, on April 16th and 17th and had 20 colleagues joining on-site and 16 others online. Back-to-back EMODnet Biology organised a workshop with Regional Sea Conventions.

The National Oceanographic Data Centre of the National Institute of Oceanography and Applied Geophisics (OGS) coordinate EMODnet Chemistry. As OGS celebrates its twentieth anniversary it also reached an important achievement: UNESCO certification of OGS as a UNESCO-accredited data centre, confirming the quality of the work done by the OGS NODC Italy team.

EMODnet made a significant impact at the European Geosciences Union General Assembly (EGU 2024) in Vienna, with presentations from EMODnet experts spanning the Chemistry and Geology thematics, among others. At the event, EMODnet Chemistry highlighted its collaboration with NOAA and UNESCO, focusing on accurate, detailed open-access data on ocean acidification. This is crucial for monitoring and reporting on progress towards specific ocean acidification targets under the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Simultaneously, EMODnet Geology presented its comprehensive range of products, including the innovative seabed erosion index database. This showcase reflected the work of a robust consortium of 40 partners and subcontractors, committed to delivering harmonized marine geological data products.

EMODnet is pleased to announce and welcome 3 new associated partners in Spring 2024: Renewable Grid Initiative (RGI), Voice of the Ocean (VOTO) and Oceano VOX. Each new member brings unique expertise and a strong commitment to advancing collaboration with EMODnet in the areas of data sharing, best practices in marine data, information technology and data services, and expanding the users of EMODnet, including for the Blue Economy.

As part of the AdriaClim project, researchers from the University of Bologna and the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change in Italy utilized EMODnet Chemistry data to create a detailed 3D biogeochemical model for the Adriatic Sea. Their analysis yielded insights into future biogeochemical changes driven by climate change, affecting marine ecosystems and key economic sectors like fisheries.

On 12 April 2024, the European Atlas of the Seas’ team participated in the kick-off event of the European Youth Week . The Atlas was promoted at the combined Youth4Ocean Forum and Education for Climate booth. This provided a great opportunity to meet young people and to share the story of the cooperation between the Education for Climate Coalition and the European Atlas of the Seas that led to the development of the map layer ‘Education for Climate: Water surface temperature measured by students’. On 25-26 April, teachers and students participating in the Science is Wonderful! science fair were able to learn about the Atlas through a quiz and Atlas demonstrations. Four ‘Maps of the Week’ were published on the Maritime Forum and the EMODnet website: ‘Land-Sea Interface and European Coastline Formations’, ‘Youth4Ocean Forum Activities at the European Youth Week’,‘United Nations Ocean Decade Conference and European Union Mission to Restore our Ocean and Waters’ and ‘Science, marine research infrastructures and Ocean Literacy’.

EMODnet has a key role in the EDITO project underpinning the European Digital Twins of the Ocean (DTO). In this capacity, EMODnet presented at the “DTO4ECOPS” satellite event in Barcelona on 9 April, as part of the Ocean Decade week ahead of the United Nations Ocean Decade Conference. This engaging session brought together leading European and international marine data services to explore the impact and potential of DTO's. A key focus was on how these innovative tools can empower Early Career Ocean Professionals, fostering new opportunities and insights in ocean science and management. The Central Portal technical team of EMODnet (VLIZ and the EMODnet Secretariat) continue to coordinate EMODnet’s contribution to the European Digital Twin Ocean via the EDITO infrastructure project. This is increasingly engaging all EMODnet thematics to enable EMODnet’s full offer to be made available in cloud-optimised formats on the EDITO platform. The latest developments will be showcased at the Digital Ocean Forum (DOF) on 12-13 June 2024 in Brussels.

EMODnet is a UN Ocean Decade Implementing Partner. In April 2024 the EMODnet network was very active in presenting EMODnet at the UN Ocean Decade Conference and related side events in Barcelona, including for Digital Twins of the Ocean, Early Career Ocean Professionals (ECOPS), Ocean Observing and Ocean Prediction, Private Sector Data Sharing, Sea Level Rise, and more. In addition, EMODnet, EUMETSAT and Copernicus Marine Service will host a joint webinar on 19 June 2024 titled “Data for the UN Ocean Decade: A European focus”. Further information will be shared soon on EMODnet and co-organiser social media channels.

EMODnet experts from VLIZ and the Secretariat participated in the final event of the Green Deal Data Space (GREAT) Project, held on 23 April at the Press Club in Brussels. This event marked the end of the 20-month project on the Green Deal Data Space Preparatory Action, celebrating the project achievements which included wider stakeholder surveys. As a result of proactive inputs by the EMODnet community into these consultations, EMODnet was highlighted as a best practice for data spaces in the marine domain, a key component of the future trans-domain Green Deal Data Space (GDDS). The event highlighted key findings and successful collaborations that have laid a solid foundation for future projects. If you missed it, re-watch the live stream: https://go.egi.eu/rv8NV.

EMODnet will be active at the upcoming European Maritime Day (EMD) 2024, with an EMODnet booth, contributions to an EDITO (EU DTO) booth and with EMODnet co-organising a workshop on 31st May at 11:15am-12:45pm on diverse data for EU policy and the Blue Economy, together with the European Blue Economy Observatory and the European Environment Agency (EEA). Register by 10 May to secure your spot and stay tuned for more information. We look forward to seeing you there!

Back-to-back with EMD2024,  the European Blue Forum will hold its Annual Meeting, "From Position to Practice," in Svendborg, Denmark, on May 30, 2024. This year's event, offers an invaluable platform to collectively shape the blue economy's future. The event is hybrid, in person or online and will include interactive workshops designed to transform ideas into impactful practices, and the future workplan for the next 18 months, promoting collaboration with stakeholders to build sustainable practices that benefit the oceans and us all. Registration is open until May 8, 2024.

The virtual Copernicus Marine Service #OceanHack4EU hackathon will be held online from 3-7 June, gathering participants to tackle one of the many challenges the ocean faces. Teams will be invited to create innovative and impact-driven ocean solutions using marine earth-observation data, to contribute to protecting and restoring the health of our ocean. Data from EMODnet and EUMETSAT will also be made available during the hackathon.

Register now!

EMODnet Seabed Habitat experts played a key role in a new European Marine Board Future Science Brief No. 11 which will be launched at an event on 17th June 2024 in Brussels, Belgium. This publication was written by the EMB Working Group 'Marine Habitat Mapping, which included multiple EMODnet experts as members. The resulting publication showcases the unique off of the EMODnet EUSeaMap, a pan-European broad-scale seabed habitat map, and the key role that EMODnet has played as a data aggregator, standardising and harmonising data from diverse sources to produce an interoperable data product and data layers for Europe. There is still time to register to join in-person or online and learn how marine habitat mapping can best support key European and international commitments on marine biodiversity, conservation, restoration and management.

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