2nd International Ocean Data Conference (IODC II) 

After the very successful first International Ocean Data Conference (IODC I) it was decided to continue with the 2nd International Ocean Data Conference (IODC II). The conference was organised by UNESCO and IODE and held at the UNESCO Headquarters, Paris, France from March 20, 2023 - March 21, 2023 as a hybrid event.

Focus of the conference was the implementation of commitments and recommendations from IODC-I, giving participants a chance to present achievements in the area of oceanographic data and information management and exchange within the framework of the UN Ocean Decade.

The topics were organised in four sessions:

1. Implementing the FAIR and CARE principles for ocean science and sustainable development

2. Community engagement and capacity development in data literacy

3. Global ocean digital ecosystem

4. Interdisciplinarity, societal needs

+ Ocean decade special event

Keynote speaker in the first session Alexandra Kokkinaki presented ENVRI-FAIR project and its goal to improve level of FAIRness of participating Research Infrastructures (Euro-ARGO, ICOS (Marine), EMSO, and LifeWatch (Marine), SeaDataNet) in order to enable those repositories to become part of the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC).

Implementation of FAIR principles ((Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) was shown through various projects, portals (Simons CMAP; OBIS - Ocean Biodiversity Information System as data system, World Ocean Database, COPiLOtE etc.). 

ASFA presented an overview on software historical development from CDSISIS to OpenAsfa 3.0 and implementation of FAIR principles in its development. Timm Schoening recommended the use of image FAIR Digital Objects (iFDOs) for the image and video data as those marine data are not standardized which prevent their discoverability and interoperability.

In the session “Community engagement and capacity development” the audience heard about ocean literacy, Citizen Science, use of SeaWatcher App, involvement of community or small-scale fishermen in collecting ocean data. The PacMAN project gave insight into development of an early-detection monitoring system for marine invasive species. Venezuela showed efforts taken in collaboration with marine science communities in order to safeguard decades of data collection that were almost lost. That included sharing data through open-source repositories and digitization of information on marine biodiversity found in the country’s institutions. Engagement in education was shown through the overview of Ocean Data Bootcamp and the trainings conducted as a part of the OceanTeacher Global Academy.

The end of the day was reserved for Ocean Decade Special Event which was an interactive session moderated by Ocean Decade Data Coordination Group discussing strategy for a data ecosystem, achievements of Ocean Decade as one of the largest initiatives with a lot of programs in accordance with Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Second day of the conference started with the session “Global ocean digital ecosystem”. In this session presenters introduced topics like digital twins of the ocean (DTO), organization of marine information big data. Global Ocean iMAGINE showed use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in imaging data and services for aquatic science. How to unify a distributed spatial data infrastructure was shown on of EMODnet centralization process that brings different services under one umbrella. Several other available digital systems were presented with emphases on their interoperability and potential for their integration into sustainable data and information digital ecosystem.

The fourth session was entitled “Interdisciplinarity, societal needs”. The focus of the session was interdisciplinary cooperation and contribution of social sciences to improvement of ocean data by analyzing user needs and integration of their knowledge to avoid injustices and discrimination. 

At the conference OBIS - Ocean Biodiversity Information System was recommended as data system, and AquaDocs as document repository for the Ocean Decade.

The conclusions and whole program are available at the conference site (https://oceandataconference.org/programme-2023/) 

The IODC III is already announced and will be held under the theme "Delivering the science we need for the ocean we want" in Barcelona, Spain from 10 - 12 April 2024 as an in person event. There is no registration fee to participate in the Conference; however, at the time of full registration, participants will be kindly asked to make a modest financial contribution to a travel fund to support travel for selected participants from Small Island Developing States and Least Developed Countries and Early Career Ocean Professionals.