The European Tracking Network (ETN) aims at bringing together marine researchers based in Europe that use aquatic biotelemetry as a tool. The main goals of the network are the promotion of transboundary cooperation, the establishment of a pan-European aquatic telemetry infrastructure network, improved data sharing through a central data portal and enhanced funding opportunities. ETN is co-coordinated by IMAR/University of the Azores and the Canadian Ocean Tracking Network (OTN) initiative. ETN is a partner node of OTN. The central data platform is hosted by the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) and provides three key services to the users. 1) Data and metadata are stored centrally at a PostgreSQL database. To facilitate the data entry and data management for the users, a web application was developed in PHP using Symfony framework. 2) A data explorer is available to visualize the data. Datasets can be filtered based on area, species or time frame. In addition, detection data can be linked to other data types ( (e.g. moon index and tides) and several plot options are available. 3) In the R-studio environment, more detailed analyses can be performed.

Infield Systems, now part of Wood Mackenzie (for the full news story please follow this link), is an energy research and analysis firm that is dedicated to the provision of accurate and up-to-date information, databases, research, market forecasts, mapping, commercial market due-diligence, transaction support, business strategy, analysis and intelligence to the global offshore oil, gas, renewable energy and associated marine industries. Over the past 25 years Infield Systems has developed an extensive range of products and services to assist industry professionals, analysts and investors with their business and investment decisions. Within its core markets, Infield Systems has become widely acknowledged as one of the definitive resources of information, research and analysis. Infield Systems services clients from a wide range of organisations including exploration and production companies, service suppliers, offshore contractors, manufacturers, government agencies, financial institutions and investors. In addition Infield provides information, analysis and commentary for the energy trade press and at industry conferences through presentation of papers and keynote speeches. Products and services are broadly divided into the following key areas: - Data Services - Research - Business Strategy & Analysis - Transaction Services

NAMMCO is an international regional body for cooperation on conservation, management and study of cetaceans (whales, dolphins and porpoises) and pinnipeds (seals and walruses) in the North Atlantic. The members of NAMMCO — Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland and Norway — are committed to sustainable and responsible use of all living marine resources, including marine mammals. Through regional cooperation, the NAMMCO member countries aim to strengthen and further develop effective conservation and management measures for marine mammals. Acknowledging the rights and needs of coastal communities to make a sustainable living from what the sea can provide, such measures should be based on the best available scientific evidence and user knowledge and take into account the complexity and vulnerability of the marine ecosystem. The NAMMCO Agreement focuses on consolidating and advancing scientific knowledge of the North Atlantic marine ecosystem as a whole, and understanding better the role of marine mammals in this system. In 2017 NAMMCO member countries reaffirmed their cooperation through the Nuuk Declaration. NAMMCO Catch database: This database of reported catches is searchable and it is possible to filter the information by country, species or area. It is also possible to sort the different columns in ascending or descending order and to show up to 100 entries per page. Carry-over from previous years are included in the quota numbers, where applicable. NAMMCO aims to ensure that this database is kept up to date with correct and validated catch data. The reported catch data for harbour seals in Greenland prior to 2012 is not included in the database due to known sources of error. This includes identified errors in where harbour seal catch data has been entered in hunting reports, and cases of species misidentification.

The CWP, supported by the participating organizations, serves as the premier international and interorganizational forum for agreeing common definitions, classifications and standards for the collection of fishery and aquaculture statistics. It has developed common procedures for statistics collation which have streamlined processes and reduced the burden on the statistical offices of national fisheries and aquaculture production, as well as providing technical advice to participating organizations on fishery-related and aquaculture-related statistical matters, and facilitating the publication of methodological and reference documents. The Coordinating Working Party on Fishery Statistics (CWP) provides a mechanism to coordinate the statistical programmes conducted by regional fishery bodies and other intergovernmental organizations with a remit for fishery statistics. Main function: - To continually review fishery statistics requirements for research, policy-making and management; - To agree on standard concepts, definitions, classifications and methodologies for the collection and collation of fishery statistics; - To submit proposals for the coordination and streamlining of statistical activities among the relevant intergovernmental organizations.

The Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) Survey is the most geographically extensive marine monitoring programme in the world. Today the Survey is operated by the Marine Biological Association, based in Plymouth, UK. Operating since 1931, the Continuous Plankton Recorder (CPR) survey is recognised as the longest sustained and geographically most extensive marine biological survey in the world. The dataset comprises a uniquely large record of marine biodiversity covering ~800 taxa over multi-decadal periods. In terms of our scientific understanding of natural variability and human-induced change on our oceans, the CPR survey is of global importance and it is used by scientists, policy makers and environmental managers across the world. The data is used to examine strategically important science pillars such as climate change, human health, fisheries, biodiversity, pathogens, invasive species, ocean acidification and natural capital. The results have included the globally first documented studies of large-scale ecological regime shifts, and of biogeographic, phenological and trans-arctic migrations in the marine environment in response to climate change. The data in this sampling event resource has been published as a Darwin Core Archive (DwC-A), which is a standardized format for sharing biodiversity data as a set of one or more data tables. The core data table contains 252,385 records. 2 extension data tables also exist. An extension record supplies extra information about a core record. The number of records in each extension data table is illustrated below.

Every year, millions of tons of plastic enter the oceans, of which the majority spills out from rivers. A portion of this plastic travels to ocean garbage patches, where it gets caught in a vortex of circulating currents alongside plastic from other sources (e.g. offshore fishing activities). If no action is taken, plastic will increasingly impact our ecosystems, health, and economies. The Ocean Cleanup is a non-profit organization developing and scaling technologies to rid the oceans of plastic. To achieve this objective, we have to work on a combination of closing the sources of plastic pollution and cleaning up what has already accumulated in the ocean and doesn’t go away by itself. This goal means we plan to put ourselves out of business – once we have completed this project, our work is done. To rid the oceans of plastic, we need not only to clean up what is already out there but also stop new plastic from entering the ocean – we need to close the tap. Working together with government leaders, individuals, and private corporations, our goal is to tackle these 1000 most polluting rivers all over the world Every single year, marine plastic costs the economy (6 to 19) billions of dollars – impacting tourism, fisheries and aquaculture, and (governmental) cleanups. And that doesn’t include the impact on our health and on the marine ecosystem. Intercepting plastic in rivers is much more cost-effective than dealing with the consequences downstream.

The vision of the AtlantOS project was to improve and innovate Atlantic observing by using the Framework of Ocean Observing to obtain an international, more sustainable, more efficient, more integrated, and fit-for-purpose system contributing to the Trans-Atlantic Research Alliance, the GEO (Group on Earth Observations) global initiative Blue Planet, and GOOS (Global Ocean Observing Systems). Hence, the AtlantOS project will have a long-lasting and sustainable contribution to the societal, economic and scientific benefit arising from this integrated approach. This will be achieved by improving the value for money, extent, completeness, quality and ease of access to Atlantic Ocean data required by industries, product supplying agencies, scientists and citizens. The overarching target of the AtlantOS initiative was to deliver an advanced framework for the development of an integrated Atlantic Ocean Observing System that goes beyond the state-of–the-art, and leaves a legacy of sustainability after the life of the project (see AtlantOS High-Level Strategy and find out more about the AtlantOS program). The legacy derived from the AtlantOS aims: - to improve international collaboration in the design, implementation and benefit sharing of ocean observing, - to promote engagement and innovation in all aspects of ocean observing, - to facilitate free and open access to ocean data and information, - to enable and disseminate methods of achieving quality and authority of ocean information, - to strengthen the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) and to sustain observing systems that are critical for the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service and its applications and - to contribute to the aims of the Galway Statement on Atlantic Ocean Cooperation The project was organized along work packages on: i) observing system requirements and design studies, ii) enhancement of ship-based and autonomous observing networks, iii) interfaces with coastal ocean observing systems, iv) integration of regional observing systems, v) cross-cutting issues and emerging networks, vi) data flow and data integration, vii) societal benefits from observing /information systems, viii) system evaluation and resource sustainability. Engagement with wider stakeholders including end-users of Atlantic Ocean observation products and services was also key throughout the project. The AtlantOS initiative contributed to achieving the aims of the Galway Statement on Atlantic Ocean Cooperation that was signed in 2013 by the EU, Canada and the US, launching a Transatlantic Ocean Research Alliance to enhance collaboration to better understand the Atlantic Ocean and sustainably manage and use its resources.

The All-Atlantic Ocean Research and Innovation Alliance (AAORIA) is the result of science diplomacy efforts involving countries from both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. It builds upon the success of two existing cooperative agreements – the Galway Statement on Atlantic Ocean Cooperation which was signed by the European Union, United States, and Canada in 2013; and the Belem Statement on Atlantic Ocean Research and Innovation Cooperation which was signed by the European Union, Brazil, and South Africa in 2017 as well as on several other bilateral and multilateral agreements. AAORIA aims to enhance marine research and innovation cooperation along and across the Atlantic Ocean. In 2022, the “All-Atlantic Declaration” was signed to revitalize collaboration among current initiatives and enhance the coordination between the Galway Working Groups, All-Atlantic Joint Pilot Actions, and related projects. Additionally, it aims to engage new partners and initiatives to join the All-Atlantic community.

The technologies developed will expand our knowledge of the ocean’s interconnected systems and provide tangible benefits to the industries that rely on them, such as fisheries and aquaculture. The data generated will also support conservation initiatives and provide vital information to policy makers. The future impact of these valuable technologies relies on their accessibility. Therefore, TechOceanS technology pilots will be low-cost and place minimal demands on existing infrastructure, allowing them to be made available for use by all countries regardless of resources. TechOceanS will also work with the IOC-UNESCO to develop “ocean best practices” standards for training and monitoring of metrology and ocean systems.

The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas is an inter-governmental fishery organization responsible for the conservation of tunas and tuna-like species in the Atlantic Ocean and its adjacent seas. ICCAT compiles fishery statistics from its members and from all entities fishing for these species in the Atlantic Ocean, coordinates research, including stock assessment, on behalf of its members, develops scientific-based management advice, provides a mechanism for Contracting Parties to agree on management measures, and produces relevant publications. Science underpins the management decisions made by ICCAT. Much of the information available on this site relates to scientific data, reports of scientific meetings and to scientific articles.