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 with Argyro Kavvada (NASA)
On September 18th, 2020, 1-2 PM UTC, Argyro Kavvada reviewed innovative Earth observation solutions for the Sustainable Development Goals. Her presentation illustrated innovative endeavors that aim to integrate Earth observation data, tools and model outputs to support countries in target setting, tracking progress on the Sustainable Development Goals, and informing sustainable development planning and decision making. She serves a dual role as Manager of the Earth Sciences Division’s Sustainable Development Goals Activities to extend uses of Earth science and applications in support of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), while also leading Booz Allen Hamilton’s project on studies, assessments, and strategic management for the Applied Sciences Program in NASA’s Earth Science Division. She serves as the Executive Secretary for the international Earth Observations for Sustainable Development Goals (EO4SDG) initiative that NASA co-leads, and the NASA representative to the Committee on Earth Observation Satellites SDG Working Group. In this role, she has built a network of thought leaders and collaborators in the Earth observation and international development landscape.
Networking Friday with Sergio Rossi (Università del Salento)
On September 11th, 2020, 1-2 PM UTC, we dived in the marvellous underwater worlds with Sergio Rossi, Associate Professor at the DiSTeBA (Dipartimento di Scienze e Tecnologie Biologiche ed Ambientali) at the Università del Salento and Visiting Professor at the Universidade Federal do Ceará. He talked about Marine Forests and their Role in the Oceans. The moderator was Eduardo Pereira, Assistant Professor at the University of Minho and a member of IB-S (Institute for Bio-sustainability) and ISISE (Institute for Sustainability and Innovation in Structural Engineering). What is an engineer? A person that solves problems for the community, giving tools and services that improve our lives. A tree or a coral are ecosystem engineering species, they benefit the community, and give also essential ecosystem services to the humans. In the case of the forests of the sea (Marine Forests – MFs): kelp forests, seagrasses, coral reefs, sponge grounds, gorgonian forests, hydrothermal vent associated fauna, etc.) their role is giving shelter and food to other species, promote the reproduction and life cycles of many organisms, transform the hydrodynamics and recycle nutrients, immobilize carbon and promote the biomass of fisheries, create physical barriers against wave action and be biodiversity hotspots…they enhance complexity and functionality that is essential for a healthy community in the benthos and also in the plankton.
Summer@LSTS 2020 – Session #8 with Eliana Silva Pereira (CIIMAR)
Summer@LSTS 2020 will continue on August 28th, 2020, 9:00-10:15 PM UTC, with Eliana Silva Pereira, who will present An Introduction to the Legal Regime of “Marine Robotics”. The purpose of the presentation is to provide an overview of the legal regime that applies to “marine robotics”. It starts clarifying the terminology used for legal purposes and explaining the relevance of maritime zones provided for in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. Afterward, it focuses on the powers of the coastal states and the flag states to define and approve the legal regime of “marine robotics” for different activities carried out in areas under national sovereignty and jurisdiction. The presentation ends, providing insights both on the international and the national legal regime that applies to “marine robotics” when used on marine scientific research, archaeology, and law enforcement activities. Eliana Silva Pereira is a member of the Law of the Sea Research Group at the Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research (CIIMAR), University of Porto. Eliana holds a Master’s Degree in Sustainable Development and Diplomacy and a Master’s Degree in Law and attended the Rhodes Academy of Oceans Law & Policy and the Yeosu Academy on the Law of the Sea.