Between late July and early September, CESAM participated in several initiatives led by the Portuguese Institute for the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA), spanning bivalve mollusc monitoring, oceanographic research in the Azores, and the implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.
Collaboration between CESAM and IPMA has continued to strengthen across several areas of marine research, observation, and monitoring. Recent initiatives illustrate how this partnership brings together knowledge generation, advanced training, scientific infrastructure, and support for the sustainable management of the ocean and its resources.
On 31 July, CESAM Director Amadeu Soares attended the inauguration of the refurbished laboratories of the National Bivalve Mollusc Monitoring System (SNMB) at IPMA’s Matosinhos facilities, as part of a collaboration between IPMA and CIIMAR. In this context, IPMA and CESAM also aim to strengthen and expand activities at IPMA’s Aveiro facilities, particularly within the framework of the SNMB, building on the scientific and technical expertise available at both institutions.
Cooperation continued in August in the field of oceanographic research. From 15 to 27 August, the research vessel Mário Ruivo conducted the Oceanic Marine Protected Areas 2026 (AMPO2026) expedition in the Azores region and the adjacent Extended Continental Shelf.
CESAM was represented by Gabriella Rocha, a PhD student in Geology at the Department of Geosciences of the University of Aveiro, who joined the expedition’s scientific team. Her participation followed an invitation from IPMA to CESAM, within the framework of the collaboration between the two institutions and drawing on the University of Aveiro’s expertise in the study of deep-sea ecosystems.
The expedition aimed to advance scientific knowledge of oceanic marine protected areas through the geological, oceanographic, and biological characterisation of marine habitats and biodiversity. The data collected are expected to support the conservation and management of these areas, as well as the implementation of national and European marine policy instruments.
A few days later, on 1 September, the CESAM Director once again represented the Centre aboard the research vessel Mário Ruivo, this time in Lisbon, at an event marking the 130th anniversary of Portugal’s first oceanographic expedition and the launch of a new expedition under the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD). Organised by IPMA, the event was attended by the Minister of Agriculture and the Sea, José Manuel Fernandes; the Secretary of State for Fisheries and the Sea, Salvador Malheiro; and representatives of several institutions involved in marine research, monitoring, management, and other sea-related activities.
The event marked 130 years since the beginning, on 1 September 1896, of Portugal’s first oceanographic expedition, conducted by King Carlos I aboard the Amélia. The commemoration thus provided a link between Portugal’s earliest systematic studies of the ocean and the scientific and technological capabilities that underpin marine research and monitoring today.
The launch of the MSFD expedition further highlighted the connection between scientific knowledge and environmental management. The Marine Strategy Framework Directive provides the European framework for achieving and maintaining good environmental status in marine waters, requiring sustained programmes for monitoring and assessing ecosystems, environmental pressures, and human activities.
Together, these initiatives reflect different dimensions of a shared cooperation strategy between CESAM and IPMA: advancing knowledge of the ocean, monitoring the marine environment and its resources, providing advanced training for early-career researchers, and translating scientific knowledge into management and public policy.
For CESAM, participation in these initiatives further strengthens cooperation with IPMA and enhances the Centre’s contribution to knowledge generation, advanced training, and the development of solutions for the monitoring and sustainable management of the ocean and its resources.