Marine biological stations have offered services and biological resources to science for more than a century. ASSEMBLE Plus will provide scientists from academia, industry and policy with a quality-assured programme of Transnational Access (TA) and Virtual Access (VA) to marine biological stations offering a wide variety of marine ecosystems, unique marine biological resources, state-of-the-art experimental and analytical facilities with integrated workflows, historical observation data, and advanced training opportunities. The goal is to stimulate European excellence in fundamental and applied research in marine biology and ecology, thereby improving our knowledge- and technology-base for the blue economy, policy and education. ASSEMBLE Plus brings together 33 marine stations and institutes with modern research infrastructure and track-records of unique service provision from 14 European and associated countries under the leadership of the European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC), an ESFRI consortium developed from the previous ASSEMBLE (FP7) partnership. Joint Research Activities involving all partners aim to develop innovative new technologies and/or methodologies to be offered to users through the TA and VA programmes. A coherent series of Networking Activities (NAs) will strengthen the culture of cooperation within and beyond the consortium, providing benchmarks for refined practices of service provision, disseminating interoperable protocols, engaging with novel user communities, and sharing insights into business strategies. The sum of the actions envisaged in ASSEMBLE Plus will ultimately increase the number of users of marine biological stations and shape novel strategic development perspectives, to be based on effective integration and efficient complementarities, resulting in a key contribution to their long-term sustainability.

The overarching goals of the Sea Change project are to bring about a fundamental “Sea Change” in the way European citizens view their relationship with the sea, by empowering them – as ‘Ocean Literate’ citizens - to take direct and sustainable action towards healthy seas and ocean, healthy communities and ultimately - a healthy planet. Key objectives of Sea Change are to: • Compile an in-depth review of the links between Seas and Ocean and Human health based on latest research knowledge outputs • Build upon the latest social research on citizen and stakeholder attitudes, perceptions and values to help design and implement successful mobilisation activities focused on education, community, governance actors and directly targeted at citizens. marine education • Build upon significant work to date, adopting best practice and embedding Ocean Literacy across established strategic initiatives and networks in order to help maximise impact and ensure sustainability • Ensure that efforts to sustain an Ocean Literate society in Europe continue beyond the life of Sea Change through codes of good practice, public campaigns and other ongoing community activities. • Ensure that all activities of Sea Change are carefully monitored and evaluated to ensure maximum sustainability, effectiveness and efficiency • Ensure Knowledge exchange with transatlantic partners to bring about a global approach to protecting the planet’s shared seas and ocean. The objectives will be achieved by a closely interlinked programme. Sea Change includes a mobilisation phase engaging with citizens, formal education and policy actors. Crucially the legacy of Sea Change, including continuing knowledge sharing with North America, are embedded within the project.

We are standing at the dawn of a century that will be largely affected by how we as a society are able to manage our oceans and their resources. Marine and Maritime Research has a critical role to play in developing our understanding of the seas and advance technology so that we can develop their economic potential in a sustainable manner. The COLUMBUS project intends to capitalise on the EC’s significant research by ensuring accessibility and uptake of research Knowledge Outputs by end-users (policy, industry, science and wider society). COLUMBUS will ensure measurable value creation from research investments contributing to sustainable Blue Growth within the timeframe of the project. Adopting proven methodologies and building on significant past work, COLUMBUS will first identify end-user needs and priorities. It will then set about identifying and collecting “Knowledge Outputs” from past and current EC projects. Rigorous analysis will take place to identify specific applications and end-users. Transfer will be achieved and measured through tailor-made knowledge transfer. All knowledge collected will be made accessible the pre-existing Marine Knowledge Gate. To achieve the above, COLUMBUS has brought together a multi-disciplinary, multi-stakeholder team representing all aspects of the research value chain from funding agencies to end-users. Key strategic initiatives and networks further strengthen and provide a strong vehicle for project legacy. A network of 9 Competence Nodes, each with a “Knowledge Fellow” and support team across Europe will provide the necessary critical mass (470pm of effort) to ensure full thematic and spatial coverage. COLUMBUS will also carry out strategic actions to enhance the visibility and impact of research to stakeholders and European Citizen’s. Furthermore working with funding agencies and stakeholders, COLUMBUS will examine the feasibility of improved systems and processes to ensure measurable value creation from research.

ATLAS creates a dynamic new partnership between multinational industries, SMEs, governments and academia to assess the Atlantic’s deep-sea ecosystems and Marine Genetic Resources to create the integrated and adaptive planning products needed for sustainable Blue Growth. ATLAS will gather diverse new information on sensitive Atlantic ecosystems (incl. VMEs and EBSAs) to produce a step-change in our understanding of their connectivity, functioning and responses to future changes in human use and ocean climate. This is possible because ATLAS takes innovative approaches to its work and interweaves its objectives by placing business, policy and socioeconomic development at the forefront with science. ATLAS not only uses trans-Atlantic oceanographic arrays to understand and predict future change in living marine resources, but enhances their capacity with new sensors to make measurements directly relevant to ecosystem function. The ATLAS team has the track record needed to meet the project’s ambitions and has already developed a programme of 25 deep-sea cruises, with more pending final decision. These cruises will study a network of 12 Case Studies spanning the Atlantic including sponge, cold-water coral, seamount and mid-ocean ridge ecosystems. The team has an unprecedented track record in policy development at national, European and international levels. An annual ATLAS Science-Policy Panel in Brussels will take the latest results and Blue Growth opportunities identified from the project directly to policy makers. Finally, ATLAS has a strong trans-Atlantic partnership in Canada and the USA where both government and academic partners will interact closely with ATLAS through shared cruises, staff secondments, scientific collaboration and work to inform Atlantic policy development. ATLAS has been created and designed with our N American partners to foster trans-Atlantic collaboration and the wider objectives of the Galway Statement on Atlantic Ocean Cooperation.