The 6th International Marine Science Communication Conference CommOCEAN took place at the Málaga Oceanographic Centre, Spain, from 26 to 27 November 2024, organized jointly by the European Marine Board Communications Panel, the Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas (CSIC), and the Instituto Español de Oceanografía (IEO).
As part of the rich conference programme, a wide range of topics and methods of interaction between scientists and the public were presented: Citizen Science, direct communication in fieldwork, international programmes that include storytelling, ways and specifics of working with younger audiences, the production of various films and animations, as well as the use of modern technologies (AI, etc.).
During the conference, on 25 November, the host presented to the participants a brand new research ship “Odón de Buen”, with exceptional seaworthiness, equipped with numerous modern laboratories and equipment, to which we wish luck both on the first research expedition (Antarctica) and in all future voyages.
The HHI representative Marko Mlinar participated in the conference, where he exchanged knowledge and experience with scientists and communicators in science from numerous international institutions and programmes. On this occasion, he presented the work of “Oceanographers on the Island”, a group of young scientists from the Faculty of Science and Mathematics in Split, the Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries, OTP Bank, and the Croatian Hydrographic Institute. “Oceanographers on the Island” were created, on their own initiative, through the StVar-Adri and SHExtreme projects. They held 36 different educational activities for three and a half years, aimed at developing the literacy of children and adults in the knowledge about seas and oceans. In addition to congratulating our colleagues for their work so far, we also convey their intention and our support for further work of this valuable group.
The aforementioned activities were carried out within the framework of the project "Estimating contribution of sub-hourly sea level oscillations to overall sea level extremes in changing climate (ShExtreme)", financed by the European Research Council (853045), and the project "Strength and variability of the Adriatic sea level extremes in present and future climates (Stvar-Adri)", funded by the Croatian Science Foundation (IP-2019-04-5875), in which Oceanographic Department of the Croatian Hydrographic Institute participates.
For more information , see Facebook page "Oceanographers on the Island".