News

This edition of the annual report discusses only those accomplishments which were of particular significance in the past year. This strategy was chosen as the renewed VLIZ website contains all basic information concerning VLIZ as well as background information on numerous projects. It allows us to give in this annual report a concise overview of our activities in 2013.

Prof. Dr. Lora Fleming of the European Centre for Environment and Human Health (University of Exeter – UK) has been awarded for her outstanding research in the field of oceans and human health. On Friday, 27 June, she received the 2013 Delcroix Prize, to the value of 25,000 EUR, donated by the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) and HYDRO.

Since the establishment of the LifeWatch sensor network for large birds in June 2013, the GPS tags generated lots of data. Especially now that some of the birds returned from their winter migration areas and the logged data could be captured and processed. All is made available now on a new LifeWatch webpage. Here you can also read interesting stories on the ' whereabouts' of some of the tagged...

In October 2012, Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) and Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). This formal agreement is based upon a long lasting tradition of successful collaboration in the field of marine sciences and education between Kenya and Belgium. The website www.vliz.be/kenya collects the current and historic activities framed...

The Flemish Aquaculture Platform - founded in 2012 by Flanders' Minister-President Kris Peeters - launched its new website. It aims to map the aquaculture landscape in Flanders, and in doing so it acts as a forum for knowledge and information exchange between the different players. The platform also wants to facilitate and stimulate the development of new aquaculture companies in Flanders.

On the website www.marineregions.org you can find - in addition to a global register of marine place names - the geographical boundaries of marine regions and territories. The shapefile with the boundaries of the Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs) is one of its top products, consulted by many different users. VLIZ receives a lot of feedback about it. In the latest version (v.8) 17 borders were...

With 333 marine professionals and students present in VIVES in Brugge on Friday the 7th of March the fourteenth edition of the VLIZ Young Marine Scientists' Day was again a successful event! Exercise physiologist Jan Bourgois held a presentation on the physiology of working at sea and in the tropics. There were about 100 poster and pitch presentations on the most diverse topics, an introduction to...

On Friday 7 March, the vademecum 'Marine policy instruments and legislation for the Belgian part of the North Sea' was officially presented during the VLIZ Young Marine Scientists’ Day 2014. The vademecum is linked to Chapter 3 of the Compendium for Coast and Sea (Marine research and policy interface). If you want to know what a particular law includes and when it is applicable, you can find it in...

The Joint Programming Initiative Healthy and Productive Seas and Oceans is a relatively new coordinating and integrating platform that is open to all European countries who want to invest in joint marine and maritime research. Meanwhile, 20 countries became a member and focus is laid on pilot actions on the common use of monitoring infrastructures, the ecological aspects of microplastics in the...

As every year, the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) gives the opportunity to +/ 10 enthusiastic students to perform a summer job in the institute in Ostend. Interested parties can apply (letter & cv to jobs@vliz.be) for a job in the Library, the Data Centre or in the Communication, Policy Information or Research Infrastructure divisions. Students in marine sciences (Bachelor or Master) preferred.

It is little known to people that there are also traces of heritage to be found in the sea and that this maritime heritage is making up an important part of our cultural heritage. However, this unique marine heritage is under increasing pressure by commercial activities at sea, such as sand and gravel extraction, dredging, the construction of wind farms, etc. As a partner in the IWT-project SeArch...

On Monday 27 January 2014 the research vessel Mtafiti is officially inaugurated in the port of Mombasa by the Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta - in the presence of representatives of the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) and the Governor of West Flanders. The ship is the first vessel that will be used for marine research in the offshore waters of the East African region. The speech that Governor...

Planet Ocean, VLIZ’s main educational project, is revised and relaunched. The online learning platform is aimed at youngsters (only avaliable in Dutch - www.planeetzee.be) featuring learning modules and class excercises relating to investigation of the coast, seas and oceans. Every year classes can take part in the Planet Ocean competition and win the first prize of a week-long expedition aboard...

VLIZ and Flanders ' Maritime Cluster organize for the first time a job fair for marine and maritime companies for the more than 300 young marine scientists, who annually participate in the VLIZ Young Marine Scientists ' Day. It offers offers an occasion to liaise with new graduates and young researchers (actively) looking for a future job in the marine and maritime sector. Do not hesitate to see...

Why is there so much foam on the beach and what is that stinking smell of the sea? How do these large amounts of green algae come in fishnets? How is that certain cultured mussels are not suitable for consumption? Scientists from various institutes and research disciplines working together within the framework of the European project ISECA want to respond to these and other questions. They would...

Also on this fourteenth edition the VLIZ Young Marine Scientists' Day (7 March 2014, Bruges) will try to highlight the diversity, quality and relevance of marine and coastal sciences in Flanders. We challenge all marine and coastal scientists to prepare a short abstract (max. 500 words: cf. template) by 16 December 2013, in which your research is presented in a clear, concise and attractive way...

'Marine Art' was a project where art students were brought into contact with marine scientists. The aim was to enhance the art students’ ocean knowledge and observation skills, to stir up curiosity for seas and the ocean, and to give inspiration to the creative process. The enthusiasm of 1 250 participants resulted in 65 workshops and an exposition with more than 300 art works. The fancy...

By EurOBIS, the European section of the International Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS), the European marine species distribution data are made freely available. To give the system more visibility and its own identity, a new EurOBIS website was launched recently: www.eurobis.org.