UNOC3 Side Event launches strategic partnership for Ocean Research and Capacity Building
A significant step forward in international marine science cooperation was achieved on June 12 as Portuguese-speaking African Small Island Developing States (SIDS) committed to establishing Centers of Excellence in Marine Sciences. The initiative, presented during the official UNOC3 side event “Strengthening Marine Science and Capacity Building through the Establishment of Centers of Excellence in Portuguese-Speaking African SIDS,” was led by Cabo Verde’s Ministry of the Sea and Instituto do Mar (IMar) with support from the AIR Centre.
The comprehensive partnership brings together four island nations—Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, São Tomé and Príncipe, and Timor-Leste—alongside UNESCO’s SIDS Section and Germany’s GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel. The collaboration aims to leverage existing scientific knowledge, regional infrastructure, and international cooperation to address critical oceanic challenges facing these vulnerable island communities.
The session gathered distinguished participation from key government officials and scientific leaders, underscoring the initiative’s strategic importance. Ministers from three African nations participated: H.E. Jorge Santos, Minister of Sea of Cabo Verde; H.E. Nilda Borges da Mata, Minister of Environment, Youth, Sustainable Tourism of São Tomé and Príncipe; and H.E. Viriato Soares Cassamá, Minister of Environment, Biodiversity, and Climate Action of Guinea-Bissau.
International organizations were represented by Mr. Vidar Helgesen, Executive Secretary of the Intergovernmental Oceanography Commission (IOC) and Assistant Director-General of UNESCO, and Professor Dr. Katja Matthes, Director of GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel. The AIR Centre’s Executive Director Miguel Miranda and Yara Rodrigues, Board Member of Instituto do Mar – IMar (Cabo Verde), also participated in the discussions.
The initiative focuses on five strategic areas critical to building sustainable marine science capacity: strategic partnerships for blue science and innovation, youth capacity building with a dedicated focus on gender equality, evidence-based decision making for marine management, enhanced access to marine data and technologies, and fostering community innovation alongside regional cooperation.
The Centers of Excellence are designed to empower these communities with the knowledge, tools, and expertise needed to protect their marine environments while developing sustainable blue economies.
This represents a significant milestone in South-South cooperation, combining regional expertise with international scientific support to address some of the most pressing oceanic challenges facing island nations in the Atlantic and beyond.
Networking Friday on the Biodiversity of Cabo Verde
On December 11th, 2020, 1:00-2:30 PM UTC, we will have our penultimate session of the year and we will take this opportunity to welcome and congratulate Cabo Verde for its formal association to the AIR Centre’s General Assembly and Board of Directors. For this special occasion, we invited two keynote speakers, Aline Rendall (INIDA) and Rui Freitas (UTA), to talk about the biodiversity of Cabo Verde.
Networking Friday with Kwame Agyekum (University of Ghana / GEO Blue Planet)
On December 4th, 2020, 1-2 PM UTC, Kwame Agyekum, marine remote sensing scientist at the University of Ghana and Co-Chair of the GEO Blue Planet, will address the challenges in the fisheries sector with Earth Observation. The moderator will be José Luís Melo, CEO of XSEALENCE – Sea Technologies. The University of Ghana, through the EU/AU funded Global Monitoring for Environment and Security (GMES) & Africa project is supporting coastal states in West Africa to utilize Earth Observation data derived from space-borne sensors to support fisheries management efforts. By engaging with policy-makers, issues relating to changes in ocean processes and its impact on fish distribution, threats posed by illegal fishing and environmental destructions from spills at sea are being mitigated by employing geospatial technologies. This talk will provide some insights on the how satellite imaging is being used in planning monitoring and surveillance campaigns of industrial fishing fleets, generating key fishing effort indices, and providing periodic information of the state of the ocean to artisanal fishermen to reduce accidents at sea.
Networking Friday Thematic Special Session on Coastal Research in Amazonia
On November 27th, 2020, 1-3 PM UTC, we visited the coast of the Brazilian Amazonia to learn more about its dynamics, mangroves and coral reefs with Marcello Rollnic, coordinator of the Marine Environmental Monitoring Laboratory (LAPMAR) at the Federal University of Para, Brazil (UFPA); Pedro Walfir, researcher at the Vale Institute of Technology (ITV) and professor at UFPA; and Nils Asp, researcher at the Institute of Coastal Studies (IECOS) at UFPA.