2021 was the inaugural year of the UN Ocean Decade, the 10-year period in which the United Nations sees more and better ocean sciences as crucial for sustainable development. To mark this launch, VLIZ, The Blue Cluster and the Flemish government's Department of Economics, Science and Innovation launched the brochure "Gearing up our blue knowledge - Tackling ocean challenges in the UN Decade of Ocean Science.
However, the Blue Economy and marine/maritime knowledge institutes remain constantly evolving. A lot has changed in Flanders since 2021. Just think of floating solar panels off the Belgian coast, the energy island or the cultivation of Belgian mussels in the coastal zone. But equally there is the InnovOcean Campus as a new hub for marine knowledge institutes, the rapid development of marine robotics and digital applications such as Digital Twin Ocean.
The time was therefore more than right to issue an
updated version of this brochure.
