Yesterday, 9 June 2016, the Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus E.Shestakov, made a very important announcement during the 21st North Atlantic Fisheries Conference: to create a joint ocean science agenda for the North Atlantic. Starting from the results obtained through the EU-USA-Canada initiative “Galway process”, he invited the international community to continue on the path of marine cooperation.
One of the main objectives included encouraging policy makers and scientific community to work together and use the scientific findings to fulfil the common responsibilities we have, regarding both nature and future societies as well.
Policy makers need science results in order to reconcile economic opportunities with responsible ocean management. Our ocean’s resources utilisation should boost our economy with a minimum environmental impact. BlueBRIDGE project is on the same path.
The communication also focuses on how science is key in supporting the management of fish stocks and insists that management decisions should be taken on the basis of the best available scientific advice. In this area, ICES, the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea, plays a fundamental role advising for over 200 stocks. ICES joined the BlueBRIDGE consortium in 2015 to benefit of the innovative tools to support stock assessment that BlueBRIDGE is developing. ICES, together with other international organisations, is currently defining the requirements for such tools.
BlueBRIDGE receives funding from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research