This map shows the network of marine Natura 2000 sites across Europe. Natura 2000 is a key instrument to protect biodiversity in the European Union.

For the first time, EMODnet Chemistry has published an aggregated collection of data on eutrophication and acidity at European level. We spoke with Reiner Schlitzer from the Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI) about this new data product. The AWI oversees the maintenance and development of Ocean Data View (ODV), an advanced software for data analysis and visualization. Schlitzer also discussed EMODnet Chemistry Services, highlighting their role in exploring and analyzing the data, and showcasing key findings.

EMODnet’s ongoing contribution of marine data for EU Policy and the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) was presented at the 11th MSFD Technical Group (TG) Data meeting. EMODnet services were presented, with specific inputs from the Biology and Chemistry thematics. The meeting was attended by representatives of Member States, Regional Sea Conventions (RSCs), European Environment Agency (EEA), European Commission (DG ENV, MARE, JRC), among others. EMODnet experts highlighted EMODnet's wealth of pan-European data spanning the marine environment and human activities data could be very valuable to complement monitoring data for marine assessments.

On 9-12 September, EMODnet brought its latest EMODnet services to the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) Annual Science Conference 2024 in Newcastle, UK. With a focus on cutting-edge developments in marine data for research, policy and beyond, the event sparked valuable discussions on existing and future digital marine data services. The EMODnet Secretariat Co-Chaired a session on applications of artificial intelligence and machine learning applications for marine data and co-organised a session on ICES and EMODnet data services, including a showcase of career pathways for early career researchers.

This map shows the members of the three communities of the EU4Ocean Coalition dedicated to Ocean Literacy: the EU4Ocean Platform, the Young Ocean Advocates within the Youth4Ocean Forum and the Network of European Blue Schools.

The 37th International Geological Congress (IGC) took place in August 2024, marking the first world congress in eight years due to the COVID-19 pandemic. EMODnet Geology actively participated with its own session, chaired by coordinator Anu Kaskela, and featured a keynote speech by former coordinator Henry Vallius. Several presentations by project partners showcased the various services offered by EMODnet Geology, while a global perspective was provided through talks on mapping projects in Brazil and Japan.

This map shows the median number of plastic bags along 100 metre segments of the European beaches and the density of plastic bags at the seafloor.

EMODnet Biology is built upon the EurOBIS data infrastructure, and the work developed over the past 20 years that have massively contributed to not only more data being published, but also with technical advances that allowed for various types of data reaching EMODnet’s wider stakeholders.