IOC Chair and Executive Secretary participate in the EurOcean 2010 Events

During 11-13 October 2010 the IOC Chair Javier Valladares, and the IOC Executive Secretary, Wendy Watson-Wright, took part in the high level EurOcean 2010 Pre-event at the European Parliament, in Brussels, Belgium (11 October) and in the EurOcean 2010 Conference organized in Oostende, Belgium (12-13 October 2010).

The Conference was organized under the theme Grand Challenges for Marine Research in Next Decade.

The high level Pre-event was aimed to optimize the visibility and awareness building at the EU policy level with regard to the importance of marine and maritime research highlightning critical challenges and opportunities for Europe in the next decade. The IOC Chair delivered a speech about the IOC and its role in ocean research at the reception organized by the host of the event.

A tailor made poster exhibition organized during the Pre-event at the European Parliament presented 10 topics on identified research priorities and challenges for the next decade resulting from the Marine Board - ESF surveys. The exhibition was also used during the EurOcean 2010 Conference in Oostende.

In Oostende the IOC Executive Secretary made a presentation about the IOC: Fifty Years of International Cooperation in Ocean Science, Services and Capacity Building. In her presentation she emphasized that today IOC is providing coodination and expertize on climate change and variability of the ocean, on consequences of ocean warming and ocean acidification, on monitoring marine biodiversity, on management of MPA and marine spatial planning, and other management tools. She pointed out that better science linked to improved risk management and adaptive management strategies will help scientists and policy makers cope with the range of expected impacts and the high levels of uncertainty related to mitigation and adaptation alternatives. More

• 15-10-2010