Objectives and means

The aim of Europole Mer is to become a research center of excellence, highly visible and very attractive on the international stage. Its central activity is to support research projects around 5 research areas, whilst fostering interactions and collaborations between the Europole Mer members.

The 5 research areas of Europole Mer are:

  1. Genomics and "blue chemistry".
  2. Global change – ocean – marine ecosystems interactions.
  3. Observation and dynamics of coastal systems.
  4. Deep sea exploration and understanding; and
  5. Complex systems for observation, measures and intervention.

Research projects focused on these 5 priorities utilise common infrastructures, are integrated within national, European and international programs and may incorporate direct funding from members. When the application for an RTRA network of excellence was downscaled to a Groupement d’Intérêt Scientifique, the initial focus was redirected on research areas 1 and 2 in interaction with research priority 5, which have received funding from the Ministry of Research and Postgraduate Studies for the periode 2007-2012. However the dynamic of the GIS Europôle Mer is the same as that of an RTRA network of excellence with the same aims.

The objectives of Europole Mer are:

  • To boost the scientific potential of the teams involved ;
  • To strengthen interactions between teams, in particular interdisciplinary links between the disciplines present in the GIS Europole Mer ;
  • To increase the reaction capacity of research activities on emerging themes;
  • To increase visibility and excellence of French research in Marine and Coastal Science.

To this end, Europole Mer supports the following activities: 

  • Research: developping centres of excellence led by an internationally recognised professor or senior scientist, and hosted by a member of Europole Mer. These centers benefit from PhD students and post-doc researchers supported by Europole Mer specific funds.
  • Education: Europole Mer encourages a Postgraduate Network of Marine Science (the European Postgraduate School) around major oceanographic centers and associated universities such as : Brest (France), Bremerhaven (Germany), Southampton (United Kingdom), and Bergen (Norway). These universities have agreed on a common selection and training program of postgraduate students.
  • Transfer of knowledge : laboratories involved in Europole Mer have close links with the Pôle Mer Bretagne, an economic competitiveness cluster in Western France focused on Marine Science and Technology. Europole Mer also transfers knowledge on marine science to the general public thanks to the Océanopolis aquarium and its network of aquaria around the world.

Europole Mer scientific community draws together a total of 500 researchers, lecturers, research engineers, and PhD students.