The European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC) supports researchers to better understand the seas and oceans. It aims to advance fundamental and applied marine biology and ecology research by facilitating access to marine organisms and ecosystems, experimental facilities, technological platforms, and relevant services in its 45 marine stations and research institutes in 9 member countries: Belgium, France, Greece, Israel, Italy, Norway, Portugal, Spain, United Kingdom.
The Conference of Deans of Marine Sciences is a nationwide association registered in the Spanish National Register of Associations. It is composed of the deans of Spanish faculties that offer the Bachelor’s Degree in Marine Sciences. Its main purpose is to coordinate joint actions related to the national management of these university studies, promote the interests of students and graduates, and act as a common voice in dialogue with public institutions and other stakeholders. Since 2007, the Conference has promoted the International Symposium on Marine Sciences (ISMS).
The special session will be dedicated to the BIVALNET project, a scientific research network focused on the study and promotion of the ecosystem services provided by bivalve mollusks. This project brings together specialists in ecology, aquaculture, genetics, marine pollution, and habitat restoration, with the aim of promoting conservation, sustainability, and the bioeconomy associated with these organisms.
The session will address the importance of bivalves in marine ecosystems, highlighting their role in water filtration and purification, biodiversity enhancement, excess nitrogen reduction, and their relevance to the bioeconomy and aquaculture. In addition, the network works in areas such as bioeconomy, bioremediation, and biomonitoring, promoting sustainable production, water decontamination, and environmental assessment through the use of bivalves.
Its main objectives include fostering collaboration among research groups, unifying analysis techniques and protocols, generating new scientific knowledge, strengthening relationships with international organizations, and supporting the development of policies for aquaculture and the restoration of bivalve populations.
The special session will focus on the use of autonomous ocean observation platforms to advance physical, chemical, geological, and biological oceanography. Scientific results obtained through ocean vehicles such as USVs, gliders, AUVs, and ROVs will be presented, applied to the study of ocean circulation, mixing and stratification, heat and salt transport, oxygen dynamics, the carbon cycle, and ecological and biological processes.
Special emphasis will be given to studies demonstrating how these autonomous systems enable the analysis of previously inaccessible temporal and spatial scales, as well as research on meso- and submesoscale dynamics, interactions between physics and biogeochemistry, episodic events, data validation, uncertainty assessment, and integration with models and other observation systems. Contributions from both coastal and open-ocean environments will also be welcome.
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