Tropical and South Atlantic climate-based marine ecosystem predictions for sustainable management

TRIATLAS

Tropical and South Atlantic climate-based marine ecosystem predictions for sustainable management

Climate-based prognostics for the future of the tropics Human activities such as intense fishing and coastal development are altering the Atlantic marine ecosystems around the South and Tropical Atlantic. The EU-funded TRIATLAS project aims to study the current situation of the Atlantic Ocean’s marine ecosystem and predict future changes. A range of African, European, and South American institutions specialised in climate change, oceanography and social sciences, as well as local stakeholders will be engaged in the project. TRIATLAS will also work closely with relevant European Commission services. The project will observe the impact of pollution and climate change on the marine ecosystem to present the first prognosis for the next 40 years for the whole Atlantic. This will aid in sustainable management of human activities. Objective Sustainable management of human activities affecting Atlantic marine ecosystems is critical to maintain its health and to support the blue economy of the bordering countries. TRIATLAS will contribute to this by delivering knowledge of the current state and future changes of the Atlantic marine ecosystems. We achieve this through a basin-wide approach integrating research from the North and South, that closes critical knowledge gaps in the Tropical and South Atlantic which impede an understanding of the entire basin. We bring together an interdisciplinary team of marine ecologists, physical oceanographers, climate researchers, and social scientists from 34 different institutions in Europe, Africa, and South America, together with multisectoral and regional stakeholders. We will enhance knowledge of the marine ecosystems in key areas of the Atlantic using existing and pivotal new (physical, biological, societal) observations. Earth system, ecological, and socio-economic models and observations will be used to assess the cumulative impacts of (climatic, pollution, and fishing) pressures driving fluctuations in the marine ecosystem, and the potential for tipping point behavior and regime shifts. We will develop the first predictions of the marine-ecosystem for the next 40 years for the whole Atlantic, by combining state-of-the-art climate prediction and ecosystem models, with Shared Socioeconomic Pathways, and by conducting socio-economic vulnerability assessments services, with stakeholder engagement. TRIATLAS will enhance capacity in marine ecosystems, oceanography, and climate research in countries bordering the South and Tropical Atlantic Ocean. There will be close cooperation and alignment with relevant European Commission services and the South-South Framework for Scientific and Technical Cooperation, as well as other relevant initiatives in the field. We will contribute to upscale cooperation around the Atlantic.

June, 2019

May, 2023

11000000

688000

EU / HORIZON 2020

Universitetet i Bergen (UiB), Norway

Peter Brandt

Universitetet i Bergen (UiB), Norway
Nansen Environmental and Remote Sensing Center (NERSC), Norway
Norwegian Institute of Marine Research, IMR), Norway
Johann Heinrich von Thünen-Institut Federal Research Institute for Rural Areas, Forestry and Fisheries (TI-SF), Germany
Leibniz Center for Tropical Marine Ecology (ZMT), Germany
University of Kiel (CAU), Germany
Meteo-France (M-F), France
Centre Européen de Recherche et de Formation Avancée en Calcul Scientifique (CERFACS), France
Institute of Research for the Development (IRD), France
Barcelona Supercomputing Center (discover), Spain
Complutense University of Madrid (UCM), Spain
University of Cape Town (UCT), South Africa
Instituto Nacional de Desenvolvimento das Pescas (INDP), Cabo Verde
Instituto Nacional de Investigação Pesqueira (INIP), Angola
University of Vigo (UVIGO), Spain
University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria (ULPGC), Spain
Université Félix Houphouët-Boigny (UFHB), Cote d’Ivoire
Center for Marine and Oceanographic Research (CRO), Cote d’Ivoire
University of Abomey-Calavi (UAC), Benin
Federal University Foundation of Rio Grande (FURG), Brazil
Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), Brazil
Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), Brazil
Federal Rural University of Pernambuco (UFRPE), Brazil
National University of Ireland Galway (NUI GALWAY), Ireland
Norwegian Research Centre AS (NORCE), Norway
Institut Sénégalais de Recherches Agricoles (ISRA), Senegal
Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Spain
École normale supérieure (ENS), France
University of Cape Verde (UNI-CV), Cabo Verde
Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte (UFRN), Brazil
Sorbonne Université (SU), France
University of Namibia (UNAM), Namibia

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