Programme

(26 April 2023)

DAY 1 : 20 MARCH 2023

08:30-09:00: Registration on site

09:00-09:30: Welcome speeches by Mr Ariel Troisi (IOC Chair) – Mr Vladimir Ryabinin (IOC Executive Secretary) and Mr Taco de Bruin or Mr Sergey Belov (IODE co-chair)

SESSION 1 : IMPLEMENTING THE FAIR AND CARE PRINCIPLES FOR OCEAN SCIENCE AND SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Moderator: Jan-Bart Calewaert

In this session we invite presentations that illustrate concrete implementations of the FAIR and CARE Principles across communities. These may include efforts to optimize, standardize, and/or harmonize digital assets (e.g. data, information products, software) or methods and practices in line with the FAIR and CARE principles. What were the challenges encountered and which solutions were applied?


09:30-09:45:

[1] Keynote: The journey towards FAIR: A story from the marine domain [online] – Alexandra Kokkinaki, Thierry Carval, Guillaume Alviset, Justin J.H. Buck, Erwann Quimbert, Gwenaelle Moncoiffe, Violetta Paba, Peter Thijsse

[abstract]

The marine domain consists of a diverse data landscape, with several Research Infrastructures (RIs) involved. In the ENVRI-FAIR project the marine domain is represented by Euro-ARGO, ICOS (Marine), EMSO, and LifeWatch (Marine) as RIs as listed on the ESFRI roadmap, and SeaDataNet as European marine data management infrastructure.The overarching goal of ENVRI-FAIR is that all participating research infrastructures (RIs) will improve their level of FAIRness and become ready for connecting their data repositories and services to the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC).
To achieve this goal, the marine domain partners analysed and assessed the FAIRNess level of each participating RI and identified the necessary actions to improve their individual FAIRness. They then created a roadmap and implementation plan that led to the development of the Essential Ocean Variable (EOV) demonstrator, highlighting the FAIRness achievements.

In this presentation we will discuss in more detail the RI FAIR assessment and analysis process and show how it evolved alongside the evolution of the FAIR assessment tools themselves and the harmonisation it required to be meaningful and useful. We will then walk you through the analysis of this assessment that led to a list of strengths and weaknesses per RI, and the solutions to overcome the weaknesses for each one of the FAIR principles. Finally we will present the outcomes of the required upgrades, adoptions of standards, improvements, developments and services that were developed as part of the implementation plan and led to the construction of the EOV demonstrator.

09:45-09:50 : Q & A

09:50-09:58:

[2] Simons CMAP: Harmonized global ocean data portal for multidisciplinary analysis [on site] – Mohammad D. Ashkezari, Norland R. Hagen, Michael Denholtz, Tansy C. Burns, Diana Haring , Rhonda Morales, Walker Malling, Andrew Neang, Charlotte P. Lee, Christopher N. Hill, E. Virginia Armbrust

09:58-10:06:

[3] COPiLOtE (CertificatiOn PoLe OcEan) – Toward the Certification of the Data and Service Centres of the French Ocean Data Cluster – Odatis [on site] – Michèle Fichaut, Erwann Quimbert, Marine Vernet, Gilbert Maudire, Sabine Schmidt, Joël Sudre, Gérald Dibarboure, Caroline Mercier, Valérie Cariou, Laurent Soudarin, Pascal Calvat, Mark Hoebeke, Catherine Schmechtig, Valérie Harscoat, Jean-François Piollé, Thierry Carval

10:06-10:14:

[4] Implementing the FAIR principles across the ASFA network: standardising the ASFA information products for the benefit of aquatic science stakeholders [on site] – Tamsin Vicary, Luca Berloco, Tiziano Di Condina, Maria Kalentsits

10:14-10:22:

[5] Making marine image data FAIR [online] – Timm Schoening, Autun Purser, Pier Luigi Buttigieg

[abstract]

Imagery is used to explore and monitor ocean environments, generating huge datasets with characteristics that cannot be adequately captured by most generic data management strategies. Due to the lack of universally adopted (meta)data standards, image data collected from the marine environment are increasing in heterogeneity, preventing discoverability and interoperability between digital systems. The extraction of actionable information thus remains challenging, particularly for researchers not directly involved with the image data collection at sea or in the lab. More globally standardized formats and procedures are needed to enable more efficient and sustainable image data archiving, publication, exchange, analysis, and reuse. The FAIR Principles (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) provide a framework for such data management goals. We propose the use of image FAIR Digital Objects (iFDOs) and present an infrastructure environment to demonstrate their use. We show how iFDOs can be created, validated, managed, and stored, and suggest core (meta)data. The goal is to reduce image management overheads while simultaneously creating visibility for image acquisition and publication efforts. Ultimately, the curated image data is the key to efficient and effective AI applications that detect and classify objects within well-curated image data sets. It also is a step towards generic, system agnostic image (meta)data exchange norms, which can be embedded within larger digital ecosystems using standard data-on-the-web approaches.

10:22-10:30:

[6] FAIR Data – A Private Sector Imperative [on site] – Terry McConnell

10:30-11:00: Health Break

11:00-11:08:

[7](Re-)building a library: aiming for FAIRness in ICES science and advice publishing [online] – Ffion Bell, Ruth Anderson

[abstract]

CES is an intergovernmental organization that advances and shares scientific understanding of marine ecosystems and the services they provide; this knowledge is used to generate state-of-the-art advice for meeting conservation, management, and sustainability goals. An evaluation of the previous ICES online library platform was made in 2020 by the organization’s Science Impact and Publications Group and they found that the system was not meeting the user community requirements; it was also impacting the visibility of ICES research data (reports, advice, and data outputs). The hope was that this project would help bring over a century of ICES research data more into focus for its global community of scientists and experts, and for society at large. An external platform was chosen to host the library, one which had the capacity to support the implementation of the FAIR principles for current and future ICES research data. Over 2021, the existing research data were harmonized, the architecture of the new platform was agreed upon, and plans for operational change management for future ICES publishing were finalized. In 2022 the new platform was launched after a migration of 17,000 files (https://ices-library.figshare.com/). The work of supporting findability, building capacity for experts to take ownership over their research, and exploring outreach options to an incredibly varied community of users, began in earnest. The challenges faced involve consensus-making, the long and complex history of ICES publishing, technical limitations, and organizational change management. This report demonstrates what solutions have been applied.

11:08-11:16:

[8] FAIR, from concept to implementation for Norwegian marine data sets [on site] – Evert Flier

11:16-11:24:

[9] Reprocessing of XBT profiles from the Ligurian and Tyrrhenian seas over the time period 1999-2019 with full metadata upgrade [on site] – Simona Simoncelli, Claudia Fratianni, Lijing Cheng, Franco Reseghetti

11:24-11:32:

[10] EuroGOOS Data Policy – enhancing FAIR data for ocean science and operational oceanography [on site] – Thierry Carval, Vicente Fernandez, Dina Eparkhina, Antonio Novellino, Simona Simoncelli, Juan Gabriel Fernández, EuroGOOS DataMEQ Working Group

11:32-11:40:

[11] FAIR research data in the Ocean Biodiversity Information System [online] – Pieter Provoost, Ward Appeltans

[abstract]

The Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS) is a network of regional and thematic nodes publishing biodiversity datasets to an integrated database using community data standards such as Ecological Metadata Lanaguage (EML) and Darwin Core. While traditionally OBIS has focused on biogeography and the description of species distributions, the implementation of FAIR principles has resulted in a shift towards the sharing of rich datasets, with detailed descriptions of all aspects of the data collection as well as the inclusion of a wide range of measurements associated with the biodiversity records, such as, environmental parameters, biometric measurements, abundance, or biomass. The Extensive use by the OBIS community of vocabularies from the NERC Vocabulary Server managed by the British Oceanographic Data Centre, results in highly interoperable datasets and supports more reproducible research.

11:40-11:48:

[12] World Ocean Database in the cloud, comprehensive and quality controlled FAIR data for and by all countries [on site] – Hernan Garcia, Tim Boyer

11:48-12:08: Q & A

12:08-14:00: Lunch Break

SESSION 2 :COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND CAPACITY DEVELOPMENT IN DATA LITERACY

Moderator: Johanna Diwa

In this session we invite presentations illustrating efforts to improve digital literacy and engage diverse communities, including citizen scientists, local and indigenous people, scientists, and other ocean professionals and stakeholders. Presentations should highlight how such engagement is leading to capacity development in areas such as data collection, standardization, sharing, archiving, and transformation into actionable, user-oriented data and information products following the CARE principles. Case studies illustrating challenges and solutions from low income or least developed states, and communities with low digitization are especially encouraged.


14:00-14:15:

[13] Keynote: From Theory to Practice: New resources for Capacity development for Earth Observation Data management [onsite] – Marie-Francoise Voidrot, Bente Lilja Bye

14:15-14:20 : Q & A

14:20-14:28:

[14] OceanTeacher Global Academy: Delivering self-paced online ocean data management training [on site]- Claudia Delgado, Greg Reed, Leen Vandepitte, Cheikh Ould Moulaye, Katrina Exter, Laurian Van Maldeghem, Marie Robberecht, Charlotte Dhondt, Ruben Perez Perez, Lennert Tyberghein

14:28-14:36:

[15] The Provision on Maritime Weather Services in Indonesia Related to Ocean Literacy for Fishermen [on site]- Dava Amrina, Nelly Florida Riama, Noer Nurhayati

14:36-14:44:

[16] An end-to-end digital solution to lower the barrier to participation in ocean science [on site] – Anna Silyakov, Tara Zeynep Baris, Thomas Li Fredriksen, Cera McTavish, Erin Idelle Gallup, Jo Øvstaas

14:44-15:02:

[17] Voluntary Marine Data Collection by community empowerment [on site] – Noer Nurhayati, Andi Cahyad, Dava Amrina

15:02-15:30: Health Break

15:30-15:38:

[18] Involvement of small-scale Fishermen in the process of monitoring and collecting primary data in the coastal waters of the black sea [online] – Boyko Doychinov, Yoanna Ivanova

[abstract]

Observing and studying the seas and oceans provides prediction of trends and changes. Stakeholders benefiting from systematic observations include various members of the Blue Network whose work and life are related to the ocean.
The inclusion of new entrants in the network for monitoring and collecting primary data can significantly improve the modeling and prediction process. The participation of people involved in various maritime professions can contribute to expanding the possibilities for predicting the oceans. For the last 10 years, Balkan and Black Sea Business Institute within Regional Cluster “North-East” has been actively working to involve small-scale fishermen in the process of monitoring and collecting primary data in the Black Sea coastal waters. Given the frequency of boats going to sea / 2-3 times a day / the collection of samples of sea water and data on air and water temperature, water quality, wind, as well as samples of different marine flora and fauna allows to improve the monitoring and modeling of the processes in the respective region. Our first project in Byala, Varna District has been operating successfully since 2016. In 2014-2015, a project proposal was developed for the construction of a market facility for fish storage and first point of sale in Byala, which received funding under the Operational Program for Development of the Fisheries Sector. The second phase took place in 2015-2016 and included training and equipping small-scale fishermen in the process of monitoring and collecting primary data in coastal waters. In 2019, our second project started, which is being implemented at the Fisheries Port “Quarantine” in Varna, Bulgaria. Unfortunately, due to the Covid-19 Pandemic, the project has been delayed, but the final phase of training fishermen is under way.
Next year, a new project is expected to be launched in Tutrakan, Bulgaria, on the Danube River.

15:38-15:46:

[19] Rescue of the Data on Marine Biodiversity in Venezuela [online] – Ana Carolina Peralta, Eduardo Klein, Jeannette Pérez-Benítez, Jose Ramon Delgado, Francoise Cavada-Blanco, Juan Carlos Fernandez

[abstract]

Venezuela has suffered a severe academic and research management crisis, which has worsened over the past five years. Consequently, libraries and other institutional spaces have been repeatedly vandalized with hundreds of records, specimens, and historical data stolen, destroyed, or burned. Fundacion Caribe Sur, through the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) financial support and the Caribbean OBIS Node, has worked together to mobilize and digitize the information on marine biodiversity found in the country’s institutions to safeguard decades of data collection efforts. Additionally, the project engaged national marine science communities in sharing their data through open-source repositories (e.g. OBIS and GBIF) by organizing training, workshops, webinars, and sharing experiences and testimonies through different communication channels (YouTube, Twitter, and Instagram). The project has carried out two training courses and has engaged 13 researchers affiliated with seven national academic institutions and two NGO. As a result, an inventory of literature-based sampling information on marine organism occurrences (theses, research project reports, and journal publications) was reviewed to obtain data on the taxonomic groups, location of occurrence, collection dates, measurements of habitat features, biotic measurements, and details regarding the nature of the sampling or observation methods, equipment, and sampling effort. The data collection was finally published in OBIS, covering a broad taxonomic collection of 3,041 marine species, with occurrences organized into 59 datasets containing 40,881 records. These data represent a 28.49% contribution to the records of Venezuelan marine biodiversity reported to OBIS. The number of records for Venezuela increased by 41.3% compared with the data available before the project. Most of the occurrences (63.47%) were registered in Marine Protected Areas. The resulting network from this initiative is expected to continue seeking additional financial support, especially for data mobilization and capacity development.

15:46-15:54:

[20] Citizen Science – Lessons learned in the deployment of the SeaWatcher App [online] – Noel Bristow, Jenny Bond, Peter Evans, David Mills

[abstract]

The Sea Watcher app was co-developed in a collaborative programme between Bangor University, the Sea Watch Foundation and a tidal energy developer (Nova Innovation). Work was led by Bangor University through the SEACAMS2 IMARDIS programme funded by the Welsh European Funding Office, with content provided by Sea Watch Foundation. The information generated by the app is managed by the Sea Watch Foundation and is available to other research organisations to better understand marine mammal distribution, behaviour and conservation status and to inform management authorities. The app provides a platform for the public to actively contribute to marine mammal monitoring and research, aiming also to encourage and upskill all users to become confident and regular Sea Watchers.

Since release in 2020 it has been downloaded by 450 users, who have submitted nearly 6,000 sightings covering fifteen species of marine mammals. Seven species occur regularly (≥100 sightings), a further five are less common (10 – 100 sightings) and three are uncommon (<10 sightings). The app also reported sightings of basking shark, sunfish and leatherback turtle. Users include the public (citizen scientists) reporting sporadically, through to users experienced in marine surveys.
Further enhancements to the app are being planned. For example, during surveys experienced users are restricted in their ability to enter multiple sightings quickly, as the app was originally designed for inexperienced observers and uses multiple pages to lead the user through the various entries (species, location etc). A new survey form will allow sightings to be entered on a single page using codes and to be editable before submission.

Key findings from the results and the lessons learnt in the development and deployment of Sea Watcher will be presented. We will also show how data can be distributed more widely to other stakeholders to benefit the field of marine mammal research.

15:54-16:02:

[21] Ocean Data Bootcamp – a workshop to support biodiversity monitoring and data management at the long-term marine observatories in Brazil [online] – Ana Carolina de Azevedo Mazzuco, Enrique Montes, Angelo Fraga Bernardino

[abstract]

The Ocean Data Bootcamp – Coastal Monitoring Data Management Worshop was the first workshop hosted in Brazil focusing on biodiversity monitoring and data science to support long-term marine and coastal observatories. The event and training material were co-developed by the Long-term Ecological Research Program (LTER) Coastal Habitats of Espírito Santo (CNPq and FAPES), the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (IOC-UNESCO) Brazil Node, and the Marine Biodiversity Observation Network Pole to Pole of the Americas, a NASA-funded multi-disciplinary international collaboration coordinating biodiversity and ecosystem monitoring across the continent. The workshop gathered participants across all levels of career development, from nine Brazilian public universities, five marine LTERs, one group of biodiversity synthesis, one marine biogeography program, the National Institute for Space Research (INPE), local professionals from the private sector, and environmental managers. All coastal regions and marine habitats of Brazil were represented. Training modules were presented in Portuguese and English and included lectures and hands-on activities on ocean data management, digital systems, and analytical tools. Five core topics were covered: 1) field survey protocols for biodiversity monitoring; 2) biodiversity data analysis, visualization, and mapping; 3) biodiversity and environmental data management workflows using the Darwin Core schema; 4) querying and manipulating taxonomic records curated by the Ocean Biodiversity Information System (OBIS); and 5) merging biodiversity observations with satellite remote sensing data. This workshop promoted active discussions, which allowed participants to engage and identify knowledge gaps and improvement needs at the local and regional levels. The event provided a strengthening of the participating networks and opening for new national and international collaborations. The meeting was particularly important for cooperation among marine observatories, the private sector, and public regulators towards developing actions to support decision-making in the conservation of marine life, ecosystem services, and coastal management.

16:02-16:10:

[23] Local stakeholder engagement leading to operational marine invasive species management in Fiji, the PacMAN project [online]- Saara Suominen, Ward Appeltans

[abstract]

The PacMAN project (Pacific Islands Marine Bioinvasions Alert Network) is developing an early-detection monitoring system for marine invasive species that will provide early warnings based on environmental DNA (eDNA) analyses. Encouraging open sharing of the data products and data processing workflows, and developing data management capacity in the area are also major objectives of the project. To meet needs of the local stakeholders dealing with the marine environment, and to ensure that the project gains the support and trust of the community in Fiji, strong stakeholder engagement from the beginning of the project has been made. Main strategies used to ensure stakeholder empowerment include having a locally chaired advisory board, meetings to review the project implementation plan and project progress, and training courses to ensure local capacity development at all stakeholder institutions.

Coordinated by the University of South Pacific (USP), in collaboration with the Biosecurity Authority of Fiji (BAF), the project has gained widespread support from major stakeholders dealing with the marine environment in Fiji, including the Ministry of Environment, Ministry of Fisheries, Maritime Safety Authority, Port Authority and Ministry of Health and Medical Services. During an on-site local stakeholder meeting, all institutions involved in the project in Fiji came together to discuss the progress of the project and the needs for a decision support tool. The stakeholders were asked to provide input on what type of risk analyses, (e.g. species or vessels) are required, from what geographic range (local, regional), the need for expert confirmation of results before alerts, and how much information on impact/management action should be provided directly through the system. With this meeting, marine biosecurity was brought to the agenda of decision-makers in Fiji, and a community around the issue was initiated.
To develop capacity and understanding on eDNA, participants from 7 institutions were trained on the optimized PacMAN protocols in the first ever course on eDNA in Fiji. The course handled all aspects of the PacMAN monitoring program from sample collection and specimen sorting to DNA extraction, PCR and quantitative PCR as well as bioinformatics and data analysis. During the following year the project will operationalize the sampling and molecular analysis, perform the data management and develop and test models required to deliver a decision support tool that will empower the local community to interpret the results from the monitoring program in an efficient manner. A training workshop on the decision support tool will also be held as a final step to ensure uptake of the tool.The close involvement of Regional organizations such as the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) and the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme (SPREP) will play an important role in expanding PacMAN activities into other Pacific Islands effectively forming an alert network of interconnected nodes, which is important for the prevention and mitigation of the spread of invasive species in the region.

16:10-16:30: Q & A

OCEAN DECADE SPECIAL EVENT

17:00-18:00: What is the Ocean Decade Data and Information Strategy and what can it do for you?

Getting our ocean data to 2030: an interactive session with the Ocean Decade Data Coordination Group about our strategy for a data ecosystem, the roles of the Ocean Decade offices and partners, and what we can do to transform ocean data, information and knowledge into the solutions and outcomes we need, for the ocean we want.

moderated by:

  • Enrique Alvarez, Head of OceanPrediction Decade Collaborative Centre (DCC)
  • Jan-Bart Calewaert, head of EMODnet Secretariat, Co-Chair of the Ocean decade Data Coordination Group
  • Louis Demargne, Ocean Decade Data & Knowledge Management Officer, IOC/UNESCO
  • Véronique Garçon, Senior Scientist, Laboratory of Geophysical Studies and Spatial Oceanography, Observatory Midi-Pyrénées
  • Emma Heslop, Goos Project Office, Acting Head
  • Peter Pissierssens, IOC Project Office for IODE


DAY 2 : 21 MARCH 2023

SESSION 3: GLOBAL OCEAN DIGITAL ECOSYSTEM

Moderator: Pier Luigi Buttigieg

The ocean digital ecosystem, envisioned at IODC-I, will be fully machine actionable, meaning that when data or metadata are updated by one participating system, other independent and distributed systems will be able to react rapidly, automatically, and appropriately. This is the first step towards a global, deeply interoperable, integration on demand data space for the ocean. In this session we invite presentations that illustrate efforts to network independently governed digital systems and render them interoperable. Such efforts are central to creating a sustainable and scalable digital ecosystem. We also welcome concrete examples of how such systems interact or plan to interact with applications such as digital twins, cloud compute resources, and modelling solutions. Case studies are sought to demonstrate how the provenance of data is communicated to and used both within and across networked and interoperating systems.


09:30-09:45:

[24] Keynote: A GOOS Observations Coordination Group Data Implementation Strategy to Improve Exchange of In Situ Ocean Data [on site] – Kevin O’Brien

09:45-09:50: Q & A

09:50-09:58:

[25] iMAGINE, AI supported imaging data and services for ocean and marine science [on site]- Dick M.A.Schaap, Gergely Sipos, Alvaro Lopez Garcia, Kozlov Valentin

09:58-10:06:

[26] A global ocean oxygen database and atlas for assessing and predicting deoxygenation and ocean health in the open and coastal ocean [on site]- Véronique Garçon, Marilaure Grégoire, Hernan Garcia, Denise Breitburg,Kirsten Isensee, Andreas Oschlies, Maciej Telszewski, Alexander Barth, Henry C. Bittig, Jacob Carstensen, Thierry Carval, Fei Chai, Francisco Chavez, Daniel Conley, Laurent Coppola, Sean Crowe, Kim Currie, Minhan Dai,Bruno Deflandre, Boris Dewitte, Robert Diaz, Emilio Garcia-Robledo,Denis Gilbert, Alessandra Giorgetti, Ronnie Glud, Dimitri Gutierrez,
Shigeki Hosoda, Masao Ishii, Gil Jacinto, Chris Langdon, Siv K. Lauvset, Lisa A. Levin, Karin E. Limburg, Hela Mehrtens, Ivonne Montes, Wajih Naqvi , Aurélien Paulmier, Benjamin Pfeil, Grant Pitcher, Sylvie Pouliquen, Nancy Rabalais, Christophe Rabouille, Virginie Recape, Michaël Roman, Kenneth Rose, Daniel Rudnick, Jodie Rummer, Catherine Schmechtig, Sunke Schmidtko, Brad Seibel, Caroline Slomp, U. Rashid Sumalia, Toste Tanhua, Virginie Thierry, Hiroshi Uchida, Rik Wanninkhof and Moriaki Yasuhara

10:06-10:14:

[27] Citing large numbers of diverse datasets [on site]- James Ayliffe, Shelley Stall, Martina Stockhause, Lesley Wyborn, Deb Agarwal,Justin J.H. Buck, Caroline Coward, Chris Erdmann

10:14-10:22:

[28] Development of digital twins of the ocean as the basis of marine services facilities [online]-Nick Mikhailov, Еvgeny Vjazilov, Natalia Vjazilova, Alexander Voronsov, Сhristina Belova, Alexsey Kozlovtsev, Alexander Mikheev, Denis Melnikov, Natalia Puzova, Svetlana Batalkina, Galina Nefedova

[abstract]

This paper discusses solutions for digital twins of ocean (DTO) as part of the Unified State System of Information for the World Ocean (ESIMO), including issues of integrated and interoperable digital framework, three-dimensional information model as an aggregation of digital twins for different scenarios of marine services (navigation, fishing, spatial planning, etc.), applied services. Evaluations of DTO basic technologies of pipeline management and processing of streaming data, preparation of analytics and visualization, including Big Data and Artificial Intelligence technologies, are given. The DTO prototypes for priority marine services in the Arctic are demonstrated.

The processes of “feeding” DTO are organized in the form of digital data streams generated through interaction of ESIMO with observation networks, global data sources, data systems based on requests and data update events. Targeted data enrichment is performed by harmonizing data, assessing impact of hazardous events on marine facilities and using other processors integrated into streaming data processing. Data and related metadata will be constantly and automatically processed and fed (updated) by data pipelines into digital twins, and applied services will continuously monitor and display situations according to marine services scenarios. For example, by comparing forecasted, observed and climate data, it will be possible to predict reactions of offshore facilities to marine processes critical for their safety, as well as to offer recommendations for the adaptation of facilities. The ESIMO will enable operators of shipping and maritime services, researchers to create thematic or geo-linked instance of a digital twin according to their needs, using procedures for setting up the DTO management technology.
The implementation of ocean digital twins on the basis on ESIMO is an ambitious initiative. These innovations not only contribute to achieving goals of the UN Decade of the Oceans, but also to transition of maritime industries to high-performance digital services.

10:22-10:30:

[29] The Ocean InfoHub Project [on site]- Lucy Scott, Pier Luigi Buttigieg, Douglas Fils, Carolina Garcia-Valencia

10:30-11:00: Health Break

11:00-11:08:

[30] The Centralisation of EMODnet: a case study in the use of interoperable web services to unify a distributed spatial data infrastructure [on site]- Conor Delaney, Tim Collart, Joana Beja, Bart Vanhoorne, Frederic Leclercq

11:08-11:16:

[31] Observations from a model-based approach to the development of a multi-community digital twin [on site]- Thomas Mansfield, Jozef Skakala, Thecla Keizer, Jerry Blackford

11:16-11:24:

[32] Ocean Acidification Data for Sustainable Development [on site] – Katherina Schoo, Kirsten Isensee, Benjamin Pfeil, Pieter Provoost

11:24-11:32:

[33] Is there an API standard for marine environmental data? [on site]- Clare Postlethwaite, Oliver Williams, Edd Lewis, Kevin Paxman, Mark Burgoyne, Chris Little, Dan Lear

11:32-11:40:

[34] Marine Energy Information, Organized: the PRIMRE System [online]- Andrea Copping, Jon Weers, Hayley Farr

[abstract]

Harvesting energy from waves and tides offers renewable power for national grids, as well as remote and islanded communities, and extends power at sea for ocean observations and the growing blue economy. To support the emerging marine energy industry, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has developed a publicly accessible, integrated data system that aggregates data and information from U.S. research and development (R&D) projects. Portal and Repository for Information on Marine Renewable Energy (PRIMRE) (https://primre.org) is supported by DOE’s national laboratories and includes seven distinct Knowledge Hubs that can be accessed and searched through a single entry point. Knowledge Hubs include databases, document libraries, collections of software, a resource mapping system, and information on marine energy projects and companies worldwide. For example, the Marine and Hydrokinetic Data Repository (MHKDR) hosts data collected by DOE-funded projects, including device testing results and techno-economic analyses. MHKDR’s integration with the DOE Open Energy Data Initiative’s Data Lake provides universal access to big data and supports a myriad of cloud-connected compute solutions for marine energy R&D projects. PRIMRE’s Data Pipeline project ensures interoperability through automated data ingestion and standardization. PRIMRE’s centralized search uses a published, universal metadata schema for marine energy information that allows the contents of different Knowledge Hubs to be shared both centrally and amongst each other. The PRIMRE team has also shared a series of best practices and guidelines for data sharing with system administrators and marine energy practitioners in other nations, forming the backbone of a system that will support the international industry. The PRIMRE team works with other marine energy data systems to address barriers to sharing data for universal and transparent access to data and information. This presentation will demonstrate the capabilities of PRIMRE with a focus on data lake uses, universal sharing, and connecting with other databases.

11:40-12:00: Q & A

12:00-14:00: Lunch Break

SESSION 4 :INTERDISCIPLINARITY, SOCIETAL NEEDS

Moderator: Ward Appeltans

In this session we invite presentations that illustrate efforts to create integrated and interdisciplinary ocean data systems that address specific societal needs.These include multi-hazard warning systems within Earth System Observation, Research, and Prediction programmes, not only aiming at ocean health, but also the 7 societal outcomes of the UN Ocean Decade. Contributions in this session should demonstrate concrete links to societal actors which rely on this data to make decisions and plans


[35] 14:00-14:15: Keynote: the contribution of the social sciences and humanities to the UN Decade by identifying an array of research avenues [online]- Alice Vadrot

14:15-14:20: Q & A

14:20-14:28:

[36] Aquaculture Risk Metrics – A digital twin of the ocean with risk data and information for multiple stakeholders [on site]- Bente Lilja Bye, Christopher Genillard , Arne-Jørgen Berre , Lena Neidhardt

14:28-14:36:

[37] Coastal research in West Africa: data and research gaps in the era of an emerging coastal engineering market [on site]- Awa Bousso Drame, Helene Burningham, Moussa Sall, Denis Mercier, Yuri Gorokhovich 

14:36-14:44:

[38] Oceans´ heritage for the societal needs [online] – Elena Perez- Alvaro

[abstract]

The consideration of the oceans’ heritage has to become an essential tool for the United Nations agendas. Preservation of heritage, tangible and intangible, has to be a cornerstone in any agendas related to improving the lives of people. The final outcome of the Ocean Decade is to have an inspiring and engaging ocean where society understands and values the ocean in relation to human wellbeing and sustainable development.
The oceans’ heritage is important, not only for the objects for their own sake but for the insights they give about people in the past. This offers a complete picture of past human civilisations. In fact, this heritage is an invaluable international source of knowledge about individuals and communities, helping us to understand not only regional or national but also international identity issues. Furthermore, the oceans’ heritage can be part of the tangible heritage of a nation but can also have more intangible values: it can serve as a diplomatic tool, identity bearer, watery cemetery or hidden history container. This heritage can also be one of the reasons for political conflicts. This is because data from marine exploration, including underwater archaeology, affects national defence sensitivity, as it may uncover military security information, safety issues, environmental concerns, cultural evidence or food security clues. These data are also proof of historical presence.

The consideration of the oceans’ heritage as a tangible and intangible unification material of all oceans’ cultures can become the connector of many divergent interests in governance. Oceans, lakes and rivers have to be seen not only as places of laws, resources and opportunities but also as a library full of books of cultural knowledge necessary for development in the future.

https://youtu.be/gVtpMp1rWpA

14:44-15:02:

[39] Ecological Virtual Art at the service of the sustainable development of the Ocean [on site]- Houda Ayari

15:02-15:30: Health Break

15:30-15:38:

[40] Tackling marine pollution in the Mediterranean Sea: needs for harmonized multidisciplinary data [online] – Marina Lipizer, Molina Jack, M. A. French, A. Giorgetti, M. Tsompanou, A. Iona, C. Zeri, G. Moncoiffe

[abstract]

Land and sea-based sources of pollution have long been a threat to the quality of the marine environment in the Mediterranean Sea. Despite long-term monitoring efforts since the 1980s, a coherent and harmonized assessment of pollution at the sub-basin scale remains challenging due to the unknown quality of data in some areas, scarce and limited data, and heterogeneous monitoring programs. Pollution assessment requires information concerning anthropogenic pressures, contaminant concentrations, and environmental characteristics (e.g. sediment granulometry), as well as detailed information on the sampling and analytical methods and quality assurance/quality control protocols. Within the frameworks of European and sub-basin scale initiatives such as the European Marine and Observation Network (EMODnet) and Harmonization and Networking in the Ionian and Adriatic Seas (HarmoNIA), considerable effort is being dedicated to collecting, standardizing, harmonizing, validating, and providing access to data on chemical pollutants according to the ‘FAIR’ principles. In addition, these data have been merged with spatial information on possible pollution sources to help improve the management of maritime activities towards the goals set by several legal obligations (e.g. the Marine Strategy Framework Directive for the achievement of Good Ecological Status, European Zero Pollution Strategy, and Marine Spatial Planning). To promote a coherent assessment of marine pollution, we present the approach adopted to create an integrated and interdisciplinary ocean data system that addresses marine pollution threats and specific requirements for data, metadata, and ancillary information. The adoption of consolidated open standards in terms of metadata profiles, controlled vocabularies, dataset formats, commonly agreed quality control procedures, and quality flagging schema developed in a framework of international cooperation promotes interoperability among different and multidisciplinary data infrastructures (e.g. those of UNEP, ICES and SeaDataNet). In addition, dialogue with major data user communities helps to continuously improve data management to better address societal needs.

15:38-15:46:  

[41] A 4Oceans case study in enhancing societal awareness through interdisciplinary historical, socio-economic, general humanities and ICT data provision [on site]- Sophia Chapple, John Nicholls

15:46-15:54:

[42] Marine Spatial Planning and maritime safety of navigations stakes [on site]- Adeline M.Souf, Bérénice Lequesne

15:54- 16:02:

[43] The role of public ocean data infrastructures in accounting for ocean natural and produced assets towards sustainable development in a digital era [online] – Ibukun Adewumi, Jordan Gacutan

[abstract]

Ocean accounting is gaining traction worldwide as governments and other stakeholders realise its utility in monitoring integrated socio-economic and environmental trends and making evidence-based decisions about natural (e.g., mangroves, coral reefs) and produced (e.g., ports and infrastructure) oceanic assets. The quality of ocean accounts relies on the quality of underlying data, information and knowledge fed into and derived from them. Thus, at the heart of ocean accounting lies the need for accurate, complete, and integrated ocean data. This includes time-series data on ocean ecosystems and their condition to better document ecosystem health and the potential impacts of global change and management actions on our marine resources. Ocean observation products have accelerated due to the advent of new technologies and data processing tools and increased the quality, quantity, and diversity of ocean data infrastructures. However, different challenges limit the ability of stakeholders to integrate the data from this critical data source into coherent and standardised systems that support ocean accounting in our digital era. This paper aims to identify the value of a range of ocean data infrastructures that support the accounting of the ocean’s biological, chemical, and physical characteristics while addressing the standing strategic challenges to ensure ocean sustainable development. It will present and evaluate global, regional and national case studies highlighting their ability to: (i) facilitate long-term and sustainable access to high- quality data (ii) apply common standards for interconnecting data infrastructures, enabling the provision of integrated access to comprehensive sets of data across multiple knowledge domains, in situ and remote sensing marine data, metadata and products (iii) fulfil reporting obligations of relevant SDG goals and informing indicators for the ocean socio-economic and ecological status, and (iv) reduce the technological, institutional, financial and cultural challenges faced by the ocean data community, from data providers to data stewards to end-users. The output of this paper will provide researchers and practitioners with a solid understanding of the way ocean data is accessed, utilised, augmented and transformed into the information and knowledge needed for ocean planning and related decision-making.

[44]Integrating the socioeconomic dimensions in the MSP [on site]- Jose L. Santiago, Davinia Lojo, Marta Ballesteros

16:02-16:10:

16:10-16:18:

[49] Using Telecommunication Cables to understand the ocean: SMART cable and sensing solutions [on site] – Jean-François Baget, Antoine Queval

16:18-16:28: Q & A

16:28-17:08:

CLOSING & CONLUSION OF THE CONFERENCE

RECEPTION

18:00-20:00: only for on-site participants