Projects

The UN Ocean Decade endorsed SEA-UNICORN “Unifying approaches to Marine Connectivity for Improved Resource Management for the Seas” as one of the best ocean knowledge-based solutions ahead of major upcoming global summits on climate and biodiversity.

The COST Action CA19107 “Unifying Approaches to Marine Connectivity for Improved Resource Management of the Seas (SEA-UNICORN)” has just been officially endorsed by the Executive Secretary of IOC-UNESCO as part of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development 2021-2030. This endorsement is a recognition that SEA-UNICORN will play a central role in supporting the Ocean Decade mission to catalyse transformative ocean science solutions for sustainable development, connecting people and the ocean, in order to achieve the Ocean Decade vision of ‘the science we need for the ocean we want’. Together with the others endorsed new Decade Actions, SEA-UNICORN represents a one of the best ocean knowledge-based solutions ahead of major upcoming global summits on climate and biodiversity.

Planning sustainable strategies for development requires to understand the distribution of marine biodiversity and how its variations impact ecosystem functioning and the evolution of species. Functional Connectivity characterizes the migratory flows of organisms in the landscape. As such, it determines the ecological and evolutionary interdependency of populations, and ultimately the fate of species and ecosystems. Gathering effective knowledge on Marine Functional Connectivity (MFC) can therefore improve predictions of environmental change impacts and help refine management and conservation strategies for the Seas. To this aim, SEA-UNICORN formed a worldwide consortium, already gathering >150 scientists and stakeholders from 33 countries. In the coming years, its members will share their complementary skills and expertise, in order to advance concepts and methods in the emerging field of MFC research and promote awareness about the central role of MFC knowledge for preserving marine biodiversity and ecosystem services.