- DATESeptember 1-5, 2025
- Registration is open
The 8th Fortaleza-Austral Spring School will take place from September 1–5, 2025, hosted by the Graduate Program in Tropical Marine Sciences (PPGCMT) at the Institute of Marine Sciences – LABOMAR, Federal University of Ceará (UFC), in Fortaleza, Brazil.
This year’s edition will focus on the theme:
🌊 Marine Animal Forests
The event will be held in a hybrid format, with a limited number of participants attending in person at LABOMAR/UFC, and others joining remotely via online access to the full program.
📝 Registration will take place in two phases:
-
In-person participation:
From July 21 to 31, 2025, with only 25 available spots. Registration may close earlier if all in-person slots are filled. -
Online participation:
From August 1 to 22, 2025, for participants who wish to attend remotely here.
The Spring School will feature lectures, discussions, and collaborative sessions addressing the ecological, biogeochemical, and conservation roles of marine animal forests.
Agenda
Official opening of the Spring School
08:00-09:00 BR
Lorenzo Bramanti: Marine animal forests: marketing or ecology?
10:00-11:00 BR
Pedro Carneiro: The Blue Amazon and the unexpected long reef of Brazil
11:00-12:00 BR
Lunch
12:00-13:30 BR
Pedro Menandro: Geodiversity and habitat mapping as a tool for conservation and management processes
13:30-14:30 BR
Marcelo Soares: Extreme and Marginal Reefs: state of the art and new perspectives
14:30-15:30 BR
Coffee Break
15:00-16:00 BR
Round Table: future perspectives for the MAFs
16:00-17:30 BR














