EOOS Forum

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Brussels, BE 8 Mar 2018

The ocean is a crucial source of food, water, energy and raw materials. Acting as a medium for tourism, transport and commerce, it is now considered to be the world’s seventh largest economy.

Routine and sustained ocean observations are crucial to further our understanding of the complex and vast oceanic environment and to supply scientific data and analyses sufficient to meet society’s needs.

As a single, connected framework that delivers systematic and sustained ocean observations, EOOS, an integrated European Ocean Observing System, will have a key role in providing this essential information.

The focus was on the sustainability of the current observing systems and how we can ensure their fitness for purpose.

With support building across the observation community, the EOOS 2018 Forum brought together ocean observing implementers, users, and funders for the first time to explore how we can work together and what we need to do to make this vision a reality.

The focus was on the sustainability of the current observing systems and how we can ensure their fitness for purpose.

The Forum gave an opportunity to hear about the latest developments, get involved and help shape the way forward for EOOS. It was a real chance to share stakeholders’ thinking and ideas with colleagues on the critical questions for the sustainable development of the European Ocean Observing System, and what we need to do as a community to address these.

The guidance and recommendations from the discussions have informed the EOOS strategy and five-year implementation plan, open for further consultation this year. Implementation will be explored in greater depth at the EOOS Conference on 21-23 November 2018.

Initiated by the EOOS Steering Group as the main forum for an integrated European Ocean Observing System, the event discussed the EOOS strategy, developed further to the stakeholder consultation Dec. 2016- Jan. 2017, and sought feedback on the way forward. The Events Advisory Committee advised on the forum programme and helped ensure continuity with the EOOS conference in November.

The EOOS Forum was organized by EuroGOOS working hand in hand with the European Marine Board. It took place on Thursday 8 March 2018, at ‘Area 42‘, Rue des Palais 46, 1030 Brussels, Belgium (map).