Our expedition has been included in the UN Decade of Ocean Exploration!

Under the motto “Creating the Ocean We Want,” the UN Decade of Ocean Exploration for Sustainable Development (#Link) has been under way around the world since June of last year and will continue until 2030. Our “AleutBio Expedition SO293” has now been officially declared a UN Decade project!  Our expedition aims to understand the ecosystem of the deep sea and to document changes of the fauna – against the background of rapid climate change. For this purpose, the participating scientists are investigating life on the seafloor in all its facets in the eastern Bering Sea and the Aleutian Trench. Our efforts over the last weeks and months on land and at sea have now been rewarded by being accepted as an official project!

Moreover, I am happy to announce that the “IceAGE expedition” (#Link PM) led by my colleague Saskia Brix and comprising 34 researchers has also been included in the Decade! This research project aims to take a closer look at the deep-sea areas surrounding Iceland. To this end, the interdisciplinary team of scientists is investigating the various marine habitats around the island nation in the extreme northwest of Europe to determine what effects climate change will have on Iceland’s biodiversity and ultimately on us humans.

A fantastic success for us all!