16^th EMODnet Steering Committee Meeting

Spring 2022

Hybrid meeting: Physical meeting at InnovOcean, Ostend & online connection (see links below)

Dates: Wednesday 27 April 2022 (09:30-17:00 joint), Thursday 28 April 2022 (09:30-12:30) (all times in Central European Summer Time, CEST)

Meeting Chair: Jan-Bart Calewaert (Head, EMODnet Secretariat)

Meeting Minutes

Day 1, Wednesday 27 April 2022

09:30-17:00: EMODnet SC Joint Session*

*This Session was open for Members of the EMODnet Technical Working Group (TWG) and the EC Marine Knowledge Expert Group (MKEG)

Welcome and Updates (EMODnet Secretariat and DG MARE)

Opening

Jan-Bart Calewaert (JBC, Head of the EMODnet Secretariat) welcomed all to the EMODnet Steering Committee (SC) Open Session, which included members from the EMODnet SC, EMODnet Technical Working Group (TWG) and EC Marine Knowledge Expert Group (MKEG) (see Participants list, Annex I). Following an overview of practical arrangements and housekeeping rules for the online meeting, JBC presented the meeting agenda.

Zoi Konstantinou (ZK, EC DG MARE) then explained that following the celebration of EMODnet’s tenth anniversary last year, EMODnet has entered a new phase which will be characterised by the centralisation process and the continuation of services going forward. The centralisation process will make services more user-friendly so that EMODnet can support the development of the Digital Twin Ocean (DTO), of which EMODnet is one of the pillars. She emphasized that the deployment of the centralised services by the end of the year is a hard deadline. All efforts should focus on this objective as this milestone is key to maintaining EMODnet’s relevance as a key actor in the EU marine data landscape. She added the Central Portal (CP) will be a shared responsibility between the EMODnet Secretariat and the network. It has benefits in terms of security, visibility and opportunities.

ZK concluded that the United Nations Ocean Decade (UN OD) will be important for EMODnet, constituting opportunities for increased visibility and collaborations. EMODnet leadership as a regional best practice should be promoted. It is an opportunity to show EMODnet partners’ experience at the global level.

Centralisation overview: short updates on progress, implementation process and high-level updates from the 11th Technical Working Group (TWG, 26 April 2022) – see PPT

EMODnet centralisation_update and overview

Conor Delaney (CD, EMODnet Secretariat) gave a presentation with highlights on the EMODnet centralisation status. He noted that in 2021 the Secretariat and VLIZ achieved the migration of the EMODnet Central Portal to the EU Domain as part of the repatriation process requested by EC DG MARE.

He explained that the centralisation of all EMODnet thematic portals is now well underway, with different time-lines for each thematic based on their contracts. He underlined that a benefit of the centralisation process was that EMODnet would have a common map viewer. The new map viewer is being developed by Bilbomática, demonstrated at the TWG meeting. CD explained that to support centralised data discovery and access it was also necessary to build a new GeoNetwork which is up on the development website.

It was recognized that the individual thematic Portals have different technologies so it has been technically challenging to find the common path.

Next steps: VLIZ (EMODnet Central Portal lead) and the Secretariat are progressing well with the latest status available on the development website. Regular meetings are held with each thematic and in late Spring – Summer 2022 Coordinators will have the chance to review the static web content on the development website. This process is progressing well and will be finished by September 2022. Full centralisation of all thematics is expected for completion by the end of 2022. The EMODnet Data Ingestion will be centralised in 2023, as outlined in the Data Ingestion contract.

A question was raised as to whether the centralisation) will affect the way people can access data. This was answered noting that the user experience will be simplified post-centralisation and it will be possible to discover, access, visualise and download data directly from the Central Portal, as a centralised data service fitting the new paradigm of people using data quickly. Some data will be hosted in a distributed way but, for the users, the services will be available from a centralised access point.

The discussion was closed noting the thematic portals will disappear but the work of the thematic lots will remain vital, bringing thematic expertise on in situ marine data management, data services and data products creation.

Updates from EMODnet 7 Thematics & Data Ingestion (all coordinators) – see PPTs

Each EMODnet thematic and data ingestion coordinator presented a status update on the work done by the consortium, identifying cross-thematic interactions and wider partnerships and collaborations since the last SC and TWG, and presenting a future outlook for their thematic area.

EMODnet Geology EMODnet Geology & EMODnet Geology (technical): Henry Vallius (HV, GTK) highlighted that the conflict in Ukraine is a challenge and a major concern, especially for the EMODnet Geology contractual work to be done on the Caspian Sea. He noted that one of the consortium task leaders for the Caspian Sea was not active in EMODnet at this time, due to the geo-political situation and that the consortium may need to choose another task leader for the Caspian Sea if the situation continues. Bjarni Pjetursson (BP, GEUS) added some technical updates regarding the migration progress of EMODnet Geology to the Central Portal.

There were no questions for EMODnet Geology.

EMODnet Physics EMODnet Physics: Antonio Novellino (AN, ETT) highlighted that most user requests are related to downloading or requests for more metadata details. He also noted that and that EMODnet Physics is very active in citizen science which is a growing area with increased interest from citizen science projects and initiatives to share their data with EMODnet.

A remark was given about the repetitions of some datasets/products on different portals (e.g., the availability of some biogeochemical parameters on EMODnet Physics and EMODnet Chemistry). A discussion followed on “How EMODnet manages the links between portals?” concluding that the duplication of data and data products will be avoided with centralisation, offering a more holistic overview and seamless access to EMODnet data and data products from across thematic areas.

EMODnet Seabed Habitats EMODnet Seabed Habitats: Helen Lillis (HL, JNCC) explained that EMODnet Seabed Habitats depends upon data from other thematics for some key products (e.g. EUSeaMap dealing with e.g. physical data, depth, and chemistry). She added that one potential issue is that EMODnet Bathymetry does not have a contractual work obligation to provide bathymetry data layers or the Digital Terrain Model for the Caspian Sea, although this is a contractual requirement for EMODnet Seabed Habitats. This would require a meeting between the thematics, in dialogue with DG MARE and CINEA to resolve.

ACTION 1: EMODnet Bathymetry, Seabed Habitats and Geology to have a follow-up meeting regarding the Caspian Sea, with DG MARE and CINEA as needed (EMODnet Bathymetry, Seabed Habitats & Geology, 16 September 2022).

She noted that when moving on to the centralisation, we have to think about the users’ point of view and avoid confusion.

She noted that delays incurred in the previous contractual phase due to COVID were having a knock-on effect in the current phase. She also raised the issue that finding a thematic expert to partner with from the Caspian Sea had been a challenge although EMODnet Seabed Habitats is now working with a partner in Romania. She added that in some geographical areas e.g., Caspian Sea there are issues with a lack of data availability.

There were no questions for Seabed Habitats.

EMODnet Biology EMODnet Biology: Joana Beja (JB, VLIZ) noted that EMODnet Biology also deals with data that are not necessarily biodiversity data (e.g. contaminants in biota).

When asked about engagement with the Caribbean region and European overseas territories, JB noted that OBIS has an active node in the Caribbean and EMODnet Biology works closely with EurOBIS and OBIS. EMODnet Biology will therefore not activate that node but welcomes data that are submitted/offered from that region.

When asked whether the data products can be enriched with data from Caribbean from OBIS, she noted that current EMODnet Biology data products and those under development are very much focused on European seas but that this question would be raised during their annual WP3 meeting the following week. It was proposed that the thematic could provide support in capacity building and other services, in collaboration with OBIS and an existing EMODnet Biology online course used by OBIS in global training sessions was highlighted that explains how to submit data to EMODnet Biology.

EMODnet Bathymetry EMODnet Bathymetry: Dick Schaap (DS, MARIS) noted the latest developments of EMODnet Bathymetry on behalf of the Coordinators, SHOM.

When asked about the work planned for the Venice Lagoon (tidal bathymetry) this was noted to be a very interesting area with a spectacular tidal pattern. The work on the Venice Lagoon is planned to be completed by the end of the year 2022. It was noted that in the future, more of these bathymetrically interesting locations could be mapped in more detail (e.g. UK, Bretagne).

It was also noted that in Europe there are some interesting areas concerning bathymetry, such as the Wadden Sea with three countries (Germany, Denmark and Netherlands). It was noted there is a lot of detailed bathymetry data already openly available for this area although some gaps remain e.g., some data from Denmark.

EMODnet Chemistry EMODnet Chemistry: Alessandra Giorgetti (AG, OGS) noted that over the years the scope and remit of EMODnet Chemistry has expanded. It was proposed that EMODnet Chemistry should consider if the thematic title was still relevant or if a new title was more fitting. This was noted to also be an opportunity for all thematics to consider this, considering the centralisation.

ACTION 2: EMODnet Chemistry to propose options for a new thematic name, considering the broad and expanding scope, ready for the next SC meeting (EMODnet Chemistry, 16 September 2022).

The chemistry lot was asked whether there were any ambitions to handle ocean carbon data (pH, DIC, Alkalinity, pCO2). It was confirmed that EMODnet Chemistry is in contact with Benjamin Pfeil from the Integrated Carbon Observing System (ICOS) Ocean Thematic Centre who deliver the data management for ocean carbon and greenhouse gas emission data.

It was noted that the JRC is absolutely delighted with their collaboration with EMODnet Chemistry and wishes to pursue this further and noted that this can be expanded further to include other lots.

EMODnet Human Activities EMODnet Human Activities: Alessandra Pititto (AP, COGEA) highlighted that EMODnet Human Activities established an EMODnet data model for Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) plans, and it is becoming the de facto standard plan. Some countries are already looking into publishing their plans in compliance with this model. As such, EMODnet Human Activities is sort of bridging a gap.

It was highlighted that both the Secretariat and the thematic lots are approached more and more by the research community about data and various projects also (e.g. iAtlantic project need EMODnet Human Activities and environmental data). A discussion was held on how to handle these approaches, as well as, the possibility to enrich the datasets received from those contacts.

Frontex is using EMODnet data on vessel density. Frontex was contacted for a discussion on their use of the data, as this could make an excellent use case, but there have not yet been any responses from Frontex.

ACTION 3: Secretariat to follow-up with EMODnet Human Activities to facilitate the discussion with Frontex, with a view to developing a use case (EMODnet Secretariat & Human Activities, 30 June 2022).

EMODnet Data ingestion EMODnet Data Ingestion: Dick Schaap (DS, MARIS) noted that EMODnet Data Ingestion (DI) started a new contract since April 2022. As a result migration and centralisation of DI will start after 2022. It was highlighted that DI is regularly contacted by industry with interesting data submissions. Some demands from the industry also come from the industry client themselves that want their data open.

Key discussion points included:

• The interest of both DI and the rest of the EMODnet network to provide good practices for data collection and sharing to the various marine communities;
• How much of the data ingestion is due to chasing the producers by community. Which community is the easiest to reach, and which is not? It was explained that most data in DI is due to chasing after the data originators (about 90%), but some data producers do come by themselves and ask to publish their data. EMODnet still isn’t known by everybody, so work is needed by the EMOD-network to act as ambassadors. It was also noted that data sharing culture is different across the different thematics. Physics data is easiest to obtain due to the data sharing culture in the community. The most difficult is data from the Chemistry community due to diverse data. The Biology community ‘data culture’ is also different because data ownership is higher in that community due to the (sometimes) huge cost of collecting the data. It was also noted, that it is interesting that that the company/industry/NGO culture about data sharing has evolved and is done more easily by them. However, some work and training is still needed in terms of formats, but also the need for metadata.

EMODnet thematic, data ingestion and Centralisation discussion and Q&A

Following the thematic and data ingestion presentations where specific thematic questions were raised, a more general discussion followed. With regards to governance arrangements it was indicated that once centralisation is done, something to keep in mind is how to maintain the different products and services in practical and operational sense. It was confirmed that there is a development or staging environment in place where e.g. new products can first be tested before official release. It was indicated that in the future this could be done through JIRA.

There are specific guidelines and framework conditions for the centralisation that will be communicated by the EC, and training offered. The Secretariat will also develop pre-publication guidelines/protocols to share with coordinators, so that there is shared responsibility and a safety check before the publication of static content and services.

The Secretariat indicated it is important that the thematic coordinators and communication partners keep updating and contacting the Secretariat with a timetable for dataset/product releases.

European Ocean Observing: Update on EC Ocean Observation initiative & EMODnet work plan alignment and contributions (desktop studies, targeted assessments, Representation on European Ocean Observing for a e.g., EOOS, future developments) – see PPTs

EMODnet_European Ocean Observing

EC DG MARE_European Ocean Observing Initiative

Rémy Dénos (RD, EC DG MARE) gave an update on the European Commission (EC) Ocean Observation initiative (see slides). He noted that the objective of the EU Ocean Observation – sharing responsibility initiative is to bring transparency and foster collaborations between Member States. It was noted there remains a lack of standardisation and a need to work on best practices in the data collection efforts and reporting. RD noted that further information on the EC Ocean Observation initiative will be available in July 2022.

It was pointed out that there is a bottom up coordination system for ocean observation from scientists (European Ocean Observing System, EOOS) and that overall coordination between initiatives has to be ensured.

Kate Larkin (KL, Secretariat) presented the ongoing EMODnet activities in relation to European Ocean Observation, highlighting EMODnet and wider community activities to-date and noting the upcoming EMODnet Secretariat activities in the new workplan (2022-2023). These include an assessment of the added value and benefits of the EMODnet Sea-basin Checkpoints, desk studies and targeted assessments related to the mapping of marine data capacity and marine data pipeline from national to regional and European data services, and the ongoing representation of the EMODnet Secretariat and wider network to European and Global Ocean Observation governance meetings (e.g., EOOS), dialogues (e.g., EU4OceanObs) and events (e.g., EuroSea project meetings, GOOS, OECD and All Atlantic meetings).

She invited the EMODnet Steering Committee to consider the two concept notes (SC Document 5) developed by the Secretariat outlining the scope, methodology and time-line for activities supporting the EC Ocean Observation initiative in 2022 and 2023 and to contact the Secretariat if they have any comments as soon as possible after the SC meeting.

ACTION 4: Review and provide comments on 16^th SC Document 5 EMODnet Secretariat activities supporting the EC Ocean Observation initiative 2022-2023 (All, 3 June 2022).

EMODnet for Business: Updates on events 2022 & interaction with MKEG - see PPT

EMODnet for business

KL presented an update on EMODnet for Business, noting that the Secretariat and wider network were active at industry-led meetings and Conferences (e.g., Oceanology International, March 2022). She highlighted ongoing dialogue with Fugro who were interested in the EMODnet Associated Partnership Scheme and in data sharing and use opportunities.

ZK noted that in Autumn 2022, EMODnet would organise two EMODnet for Business online events, both focusing on marine renewable energy. The workshops would have a regional focus, with one workshop covering the Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea, the other one will cover the North Sea and Baltic Sea. She added that this format would be repeated in 2023 focusing on a different industry/sector and that suggestions were welcome.

The EMODnet Secretariat stated its interest to hear from all, and particularly the members of the EC MKEG, which industry events they think could be interesting to attend, which sectors EMODnet should focus on and how they think the relation with the Associated Partners could evolve.

EMODnet Communication: updates on latest Strategy - see PPT

EMODnet Communication Strategy

Francis Strobbe (FS, Secretariat) presented the EMODnet Communication Strategy, which is being updated as part of the new Secretariat workplan. He reiterated that during and after centralisation there will be one central helpdesk, where thematic lot coordinators can follow up on user requests. He presented the value proposition of EMODnet and a new proposition for audience segmentation.

JBC invited the SC to give feedback/ideas on any aspect of the Strategy, also for the newsletter, videos, infographics, etc. Existing material will be updated, in some cases there will be substantial changes.

ACTION 5: EMODnet SC to send feedback/ideas on the EMODnet Communication Strategy (All, 3 June 2022).

With regard to the audience segmentation, it was commented that “Data originators” should be added as an additional level before the “Data holders and managers” as the data collectors/originators are an important stakeholder in the marine data value chain. It was also suggested that the “Decision makers and funders” should be renamed to “Decision makers, policy makers and funders”.

It was noted that the Secretariat communications team will be launching a tele-meeting to gather key contacts for communication from the different thematic lots, to brief everyone and create common guidelines and optimise the workflow.

ACTION 6: Secretariat to organise a tele-call with EMODnet lot Coordinators and Communication contact points for input/planning of the outputs/products to optimise the approach (EMODnet Secretariat, 30 June 2022).

EMODnet flagship events 2022-2023 - see PPTs

Concept_Open Sea Lab 3 Hackathon

EMODnet Open Conference 2023

Open Sea Lab 3: Francis Strobbe presented the proposed concept for the upcoming Open Sea Lab (OSL) 3 in early 2023, highlighting the objectives and a preliminary timeline. The OSL3 will build on the success of the previous two OSL editions. There will be a call for co-creation in the Summer (2022). Key open questions on the table, still to be answered, were: will the hackathon be online vs hybrid? If hybrid, where will it take place?

ACTION 7: Secretariat to send a call for involvement and input from coordinators and wider community for the OSL 3 (EMODnet Secretariat, 17 June 2022).

A concern was voiced by DG MARE (ZK) about the complexity of the event, noting that this could potentially be further optimised to be most efficient and yet still impactful. The Secretariat recognised it would be important to rationalise the human resources whilst ensuring that OSL3 was designed as an important stress-test for the EMODnet centralised data services. The importance of having multi-disciplinary challenges was also noted, together with the need to be not too restrictive and to offer a wild card to allow the community to come up with out-of-the-box ideas.

Third EMODnet Open Conference 2023: Kate Larkin presented the early concept for the third EMODnet Open Conference 2023, to take place in late Autumn 2023. She noted the planning for this flagship event would start relatively soon, in parallel with the Open Sea Lab 3 preparations. She highlighted that after the Open Conference 2021 had to move to a largely online event (With hybrid hub in Ostend, Belgium), it would be important to organise in in-person physical event to bring the EMODnet-partnership together with the wider stakeholder community.

It was noted that building on the successful co-operation of the coordinators in the previous (second) EMODnet Open Conference, the Secretariat welcomes input from coordinators on the programme content and overall planning. It was noted that the location is not yet fixed and coordinators were invited to send ideas for location, or offers for in-kind support to the Secretariat.

ACTION 8: EMODnet Coordinators to send suggestions and ideas for the EMODnet Open Conference 2023 (location, in-kind support, programme content, etc.) to the Secretariat (All, 9 September 2022).

External partnerships and interactions

European partnerships: Copernicus Marine Service, Regional Sea Conventions & Other - see PPT

EMODnet European partnerships

KL presented an overview of the recent partnerships and interactions of EMODnet at European level, including the important collaboration with Copernicus Marine Service.

Following the dialogue at the 15^th SC on Regional Sea Convention dialogue, the SC decided to further coordinate across thematic, data ingestion and Secretariat interactions.

ACTION 9: EMODnet Secretariat to share a table template for producing a summary of cross-thematic, data ingestion and Secretariat interactions with Regional Sea Conventions (EMODnet Secretariat & coordinators, 17 June 2022).

It was asked whether EMODnet has any priorities in the list of partners or if they have any key partners. It was explained that EMODnet has been built from a community up, from a core stakeholder group. Now that EMODnet is very mature, it is timely to enhance the dialogue up and down the stream, with the ocean observing community to also diversifying the data providers to include also citizen science, industry, and with users. The EC DG MARE noted that EMODnet is already investing time into these dialogues e.g., with the European ocean observing communities.

The number of requests from projects shows the visibility and relevance of EMODnet, but in some cases we need to be selective. EC DG MARE confirmed EMODnet is a big network and demands are higher than in the beginning. The priorities are: (i) making the user base larger and expanding to new categories of users, and (ii) becoming the foundation of the Digital Twin Ocean (DTO). A huge volume of activity will be generated from Mission Ocean. It will be important to look at the Work Programme to identify where the working load will be. It was pointed out that the development of partnerships is a shared responsibility, that the Secretariat plays a facilitator role, and that the Secretariat and thematic coordinators share the load.

It was also noted that the mandate of EMODnet is to support all Directives related to the sea (e.g. Habitats Directive, Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD), Maritime Spatial Planning Directive (MSPD), etc.) and for this reason the EMODnet SC includes representation from across EC DGs, including DG ENV. It was noted it may be timely to revisit the Nature Directives and see what progress has been made over the years.

EMODnet for society: European Atlas of the Seas, EU4Ocean #MakeEUBlue – see PPT

EMODnet European Atlas Of the Seas

Tim Collart (TC, Secretariat) presented the European Atlas of the Seas. Almost half of the currently available 300 layers originate from EMODnet, with the EMODnet Secretariat also powering the technical coordination and communication of the tool.

Nathalie Van Isacker (NVI, Secretariat) highlighted the three objectives of the European Atlas of the Seas Communication Strategy, which was updated to adapt it to the audience: (i) to inform users of the dynamics in the atlas, (ii) to connect with them, (iii) to expand the audiences and reach out to new users. NVI then introduced EU4Ocean as the European Ocean literacy coalition set-up in 2020 connecting marine and maritime stakeholders for joint actions in ocean sustainability and ocean literacy. She explained that EU4Ocean launched an advocacy campaign with the objective to show how everybody is connected to the ocean (#MakeEUBlue). She added that EMODnet has delivered nine pledges including the EMODnet Secretariat, European Atlas of the Seas, seven thematics and data ingestion.

KL noted that these EMODnet pledges were very welcome and completed the 15^th SC Action for Coordinators to submit pledges. A promotion campaign was underway through EMODnet twitter to communicate these EMODnet pledges to the wider public. It was mentioned that the EU ocean literacy summit will take place on 20 May 2022 as part of European Maritime Day 2022 in Ravenna, Italy. The EMODnet Secretariat would be active at the Summit and would also be showcasing the European Atlas of the Seas.

Global partnerships: EMOD-PACE, IODE, GEOSS & GEO-Blue Planet, UN Ocean Decade – see PPT

EMODnet for Global

JBC presented EMODnet activities at the global level. He noted that Europe has one of the most advanced capabilities in ocean data and marine knowledge sharing in the world. He added the datasets that EMODnet collectively integrates, standardises and makes available are becoming increasingly relevant.

He presented that under the UN Ocean Decade (UN OD), a Data Coordination platform was set up with two components (Data Coordination Group and Technical Data Group). EMODnet is represented with JBC as co-Chair, a good platform to share its expertise in this forum and the wider international community. He added the main aim of the platform is to discuss how to best develop a strategy for the UN OD. EMODnet already contributes to the UN OD through the Decade Actions DITTO, COAST PREDICT and Ocean Best Practices.

With this growing number of roles and demands, and to keep track of who does what and where in all of these OD initiatives, JBC explained it had been decided to also set up an internal EMODnet4OceanDecade Coordination Group, open to all EMODnet partners (core, associated, ...). In the coming weeks there will be a kick-off meeting of this group.

A discussion was held on the relationship between the EMODnet Coordination group and the UN OD coordination group. The Secretariat explained that the EMODnet4OceanDecade is an internal (EMODnet) group, open to all partner organizations who can send one or more persons, set up to provide clarity and internal coordination. The remit of this (internal) group is to act as a channel between everything happing in the Decade, exchange information and how to strategically send resources; while the Ocean Decade coordination group (35 people only) is driven by IOC and the Decade Coordination Unit.

The Secretariat noted that a number of applications had already been received for the internal EMODnet4OceanDecade Coordination Group, but the call to the EMOD-network would be relaunched.

It was noted that EMODnet is already committing a lot of in-kind support to the UN OD on top of its workplan and the EC was invited to think about what dedicated sources can be made available for this, noting that invitations, opportunities and demands would continue to increase throughout the UN Ocean Decade which is ongoing until 2030.

Two upcoming EMODnet for global events were noted, namely two UN OD satellite activities of the Laboratory on a transparent and accessible ocean:

1. EMODnet-Copernicus Marine Service event on EU marine data services for the All-Atlantic and Global Ocean Data Spaces, 11 May 2022 PM;
2. EMOD-PACE-CEMDnet EU-China marine data interoperability, 11 May 2022 AM

External events: Recent and upcoming to end of 2022

It was noted that Document 4 lists the events where EMODnet will participate, present and/or co-organise until end of September 2022.

EC DG MARE updated the EMODnet SC that the EC is organising the 10^th anniversary of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the EC and International Hydrographic Organisation (IHO): https://maritime-forum.ec.europa.eu/node/7110

Closing remarks and Any Other Business (AOB)

Day 2, Thursday 28 April 2022

9:30-12:30: EMODnet SC reconvenes (Closed session)

Welcome & introduction

The meeting on 28 April was a closed session for the EMODnet SC only, allowing for operational discussions and further reflections on specific topics from the 11^th TWG and 16^th SC open session on 26^th and 27^th May 2022 respectively, including centralisation, internal and external partnerships, communication and organization of upcoming flagship events.

Operational updates from the Secretariat

List and status of actions from previous meetings

KL ran through the action list of the previous 15^th SC.

With regard to Action Point 4:

ACTION 10: Thematic coordinators to send to the Secretariat any footage they may have that the Secretariat can use in videos (EMODnet coordinators, 17 June 2022).

With regard to Action Point 7: UNEP-MAP are interested to hear from different thematics on further input of EMODnet data for the Mediterranean Sea Quality Status Report 2023. It was suggested to extend this to other sea-basins.

With regard to Action Point 11: information on the IODE Conference can be found here: https://emodnet.ec.europa.eu/en/emodnet-experts-showcase-network-achhievements-and-global-contributions-iodc-2022

With regard to Action Point 12: data flows were established between the thematics listed and PANGEA. In the future, it will be looked into making PANGAEA a SeaDataNet node. EMODnet Chemistry would appreciate a long-term collaboration with PANGAEA. EMODnet Secretariat plans to reactivate the conversations in the near future.

Key updates on EMODnet work plan and partnerships

The 6^th EMODnet-Copernicus Marine Service coordination meeting took place in March (minutes: https://maritime-forum.ec.europa.eu/node/7113). At the meeting, the management coordination team from both data services decided it was timely to have a second workshop dedicated to coastal issues following the first meeting in 2020, e.g. to see if gaps identified in previous meetings have been met/filled. The workshop will be on the 22^nd of September 2022, open to EMODnet coordinators and Copernicus. A few external experts will be invited, and the Secretariat would value feedback and recommendations from the SC.

ACTION 11: Secretariat to solicit input from thematic coordinators on availability, experts to invite, location and content for the upcoming EMODnet-Copernicus coastal workshop in September.

ACTION 12: Secretariat to share updated slide decks (EMODnet powerpoint templates) prepared by the EMODnet Secretariat with the coordinators (EMODnet Secretariat, 3 June 2022).

Jan-Bart presented the new workplan of the EMODnet Secretariat (2022-2023). The Secretariat will share the powerpoint with the new workplan of the Secretariat with the SC. EMODnet Secretariat Workplan overview

• Steering Committee composition and Terms of Reference (ToR)

It was noted the SC and TWG ToRs have not changed and were added as meeting documents for information. There will be an opportunity to revisit these as well as ideas to optimise the governance and composition after EMODnet centralisation is achieved.

DG MARE & CINEA reflections on future EMODnet developments, partnerships, etc

CINEA clarified the position about the participation of Russian entities. Any new contracts cannot include Russian participants. For the ongoing contracts, it’s highly probable that the Russian entities will need to be removed from the consortium through the use of amendment to the contract. There is, however, no official answer yet on the subject of ongoing contracts with Russian partners as it’s still under discussion with the legal department of Commission services. DG MARE mentioned that a group at the European Commission is working on that matter (interactions with groups including Russian partners).

ACTION 13: DG MARE and CINEA to check how to deal with future and ongoing EMODnet contracts with Russian partners, and how to deal with previous contract payments to Russian partners (DG MARE & CINEA, ongoing).

There was a question on how EMODnet should proceed with interactions with the Black Sea Commission. DG MARE advised that the EMODnet network should try to maintain the contacts as much as possible, at least with the non-Russian partners.

ACTION 14: CINEA to check with EC services on the status and approach going forward for Russian partners in existing contracts (CINEA, 10 June 2022).

ACTION 15: EMODnet coordinators to keep the Secretariat and CINEA updated about any impacts related to the geo-political situation in Ukraine on the EMODnet lot partnerships and ability to deliver on their contracts (EMODnet coordinators, ongoing).

ACTION 16: Secretariat, in dialogue with CINEA to check with Copernicus Marine Service to understand how they dealt with Russian IPs (CINEA and EMODnet Secretariat, 20 June 2022).

DG MARE noted that EMODnet and Copernicus Marine Service/Mercator Ocean International were working together to further update and upgrade data infrastructures as core pillars of the future Digital Twin Ocean (DTO) and there was a service contact for named beneficiaries to conduct this precursor work, in dialogue with the Horizon Europe EU Green Deal project ILIAD which would be in contact with EMODnet and Mercator Ocean International. It was noted that the (European) DTO core infrastructure should be ready by end 2024.

DG MARE also advised also to keep on the “Destination Earth” and how they design their work.

DG MARE closed noting that the Digital Ocean project is a huge opportunity for EMODnet to showcase the value of the network and work done. The main challenge would be to take the Digital Ocean further and beyond 2024.

Central Portal centralisation: Reflections from TWG and SC Day 1 discussions on challenges, opportunities and next steps

The Central Portal (CP) technical team re-emphasised it is operating on the time table for delivery of the static content fully finalised in September 2022. Before then, the CP tech team aims for having the static web content done by May 2022, to be then sent to DG MARE for review before proceeding with a review by EMODnet Coordinators.

It was noted that a real challenge is to come up with a common set of technical solutions to be able to share data from all the thematic lots and to consolidate the static content and features in the map viewer. For the map viewer, a consolidation of the data layers to make them more user-friendly and more understandable will be needed. This is currently the case with layers from EMODnet Seabed Habitats and Physics. The generic approach, for the CP map viewer, is not to have the older versions of products in the map viewer, but to have them in the CP catalogue. The Secretariat emphasised it requires the thematic lots to (re)act as quickly as possible to JIRA tickets.

It was indicated that there are a number of technical limitations the CP tech team needs to work around in by the end of May 2022, including filter options (e.g., Bilbomatica required more clarity on the filter function from EMODnet Biology and Chemistry). The CP technical team advised the thematic lots to make use of HTML configuration files for the GetFeatureInfo. It is noted that whilst the CP tech team can provide some guidelines, each thematic should produce its own html template as these will be specific to each thematic and the responsibility of the HTML template lays with the thematic lots. It was added that lots should only focus on the structure and not on the styling.

EMODnet flagship events: EMODnet Hackathon 2023; EMODnet Open Conference 2023 - see PPT

EMODnet OSL 3 Hackathon_Discussion

The Secretariat reiterated the call to ask EMODnet Coordinators for input on a potential location and venue for the EMODnet Hackathon (hosting 120 people) and/or EMODnet Open Conference (to accommodate up to 250 people). It was noted that the Open Conference first draft Programme with Session titles and initial scope, potential speakers will be drafted by the next SC.

EMODnet community dialogues: Ocean Best Practice; Citizen Science, Other topics

Citizen science: TC highlighted that the community dialogue on this topic took place on 18 June 2021, back-to-back with the second EMODnet Open Conference. It led to a number of recommendations and conclusions. The overarching conclusion was that EMODnet could develop as a focal point for EU citizen science data.

It was stated to keep working on this topic, as citizen science presents a large opportunity for EMODnet to ingest data from beyond the standard research community. Collaborating with other/new communities has a mutual benefit: it would help spreading the name of EMODnet to new communities, and in the meantime it would attract other citizen science communities.

EMODnet Physics, Chemistry and Biology noted they have ongoing activities in the field of citizen science; EMODnet Chemistry highlighted that the use of the Data Ingestion platform was really helpful in all interactions.

A discussion noted that EMODnet should push for good quality data, not just the volume of and that data provenance was also important. For Physics the quality is really dependent on the accuracy, the topic/parameter and the initiative. For Chemistry, the protocols used for collecting the data is the most critical aspect. DI (Data Ingestion) has included/given responsibility to the data centres to validate the quality of the data added in DI. Data collected with the wrong protocol have not been added in DIP. Quality control of data is very important, and training on the right protocols is essential.

It was concluded that EMODnet already has the infrastructure to share citizen science data and needs to look into the metadata needed. The usage is really portal dependent. The Secretariat suggested to think on how to communicate on the protocol(s) and maybe promote them as success stories on the website.

ACTION 17: Secretariat to create an inventory of citizen science initiatives/projects based on a call and input from the thematic and data ingestion coordinators (EMODnet Secretariat & coordinators, 30 June 2022).

Ocean best practices system (OBPS): FS updated the SC on work in this area since the community dialogue on 16 June 2022, which was co-organised with the Ocean Best Practices System (OBPS), held back-to-back with the EMODnet Open Conference 2021. In early April 2022 a workshop was implemented by EATIP and the IODE OBPS system which mainly went through the concept and tools. Biology was also involved in a meeting with a business who raised that, in some cases, they follow some standards for their exploration. This allows consumers to better follow and choose the origins of their seafood.

It was highlighted that there is an upcoming meeting in October by IOC UNESCO, spanning a few days: https://www.oceanbestpractices.org/workshops/ocean-practices-obps-works….

ACTION 18: Secretariat to contact the SC in relation to EMODnet participation in the Ocean Best Practice System meeting and workshops between 5-16 October 2022. (EMODnet SC, 9 September 2022).

EMODnet for Global

UN Ocean Decade Data Coordination Group: Operational discussion on Terms of Reference, membership and roles, activities - see PPT

Ocean Decade Data Coordination Platform

JBC explained that the Ocean Decade Data Coordination Platform stems from the UN OD Implementation Plan. The vision of the OD is that the Ocean community has to bring together capacities to co-design an ecological system. In order to coordinate the many collaborations, UN OD created an OD Data Coordination Platform. The Ocean Decade Data Coordination Group will be maintained until 2030, and mandates are for two years. The composition of the Ocean Decade Data Coordination Group is diverse in terms of background, geographic spread, sectors, affiliation, etc.

It was noted the next call for Decade Actions will be launched on 15^th October 2022 and will be on data needs.

It was explained that EMODnet has been engaged since the beginning of the UN OD. In dialogues with the IOC-UNESCO and other key actors, EMODnet is being looked upon to take on a leading role. Following this the Secretariat has applied for EMODnet to become a Decade implementing partner. Decade implementing partners support the Ocean Decade by implementing decade actions.

EMODnet 4 UN Ocean Decade Coordination Group: Terms of Reference

The Secretariat updated the EMODnet SC about the EMODnet4UNOceanDecade Coordination Group, providing more details on the informal coordination group, for which the Secretariat received a number of nominees. It was noted that the call for expressions of interest would be relaunched.

ACTION 19: Secretariat re-launch the call for expression of interest for EMODnet partners to take part in the informal EMODnet4OceanDecade Coordination Group (EMODnet Secretariat, 3 June 2022 - Achieved).

UN Ocean Conference side event

The EMODnet Secretariat updated the EMODnet SC about a side event instigated by EMODnet Secretariat in collaboration with IOC-UNESCO, IODE, FUGRO, Copernicus Marine Service and VLIZ. The deadline for the call for UN Ocean Conference side events is 8 May 2022. Following the initial notification to Coordinators in April 2022, the Secretariat would send further information to EMODnet Coordinators and the EMODnet SC when available.

Next Steering Committee Meeting: format, date and location, possibility for back-to-back meeting with Copernicus Marine Service

For the next SC and TWG it was noted that a physical meeting would be preferred, where possible, to further promote exchange. It was suggested that the TWG and SC could be decoupled, and that it could be an option to have the 12^th TWG back-to-back with the CMEMS coastal workshop in September 2022, timely considering the centralisation efforts. It was discussed whether the next SC could be a full day closed session and whether an open session with the MKEG would be needed, to be discussed with DG MARE. It was also noted that Coordinators had requested to explore options for an extra half-day for cross-thematic discussions.

ACTION 20: Secretariat to circulate doodle and survey/proposal about the format and dates of the next SC and TWG, and slot in time for cross-thematic interactions (EMODnet Secretariat & Coordinators, 3 June 2022)

Summary of actions and wrap up

See list of actions at the top of the minutes.

Concluding remarks were given by Rémy Dénos (EC DG MARE). He flagged that “Mission Ocean” should be discussed in future meetings and EMODnet should follow the upcoming information on the programme and calls, noting there are 11 lighthouse projects with 23 mentions of EMODnet.

DG MARE noted it is impressed by the work done in EMODnet and encouraged EMODnet to continue like this. It was noted that it was important that all portals feel involved and responsible to undertake the work for the centralisation in a timely way, to consider EMODnet as one (common) undertaking.

Any other business (AOB)

End of Meeting

Annex I: List of participants

EMODnet Steering Committee and Technical Working Group

*Present only in EMODnet SC Joint Session with SC, TWG and EC MKEG

** Present only in EMODnet SC Closed Session

All other participants were present in both EMODnet SC Joint Session and Closed Session

MKEG members (Present in the SC Joint Session (Wednesday 27 April 202, full day))