Vectors of Change in Oceans and Seas Marine Life, Impact on Economic Sectors

Vectors was an EU funded project with 38 partner institutions from 16 different countries. Through interdisciplinary research the project addressed changes to marine life, such as changes in distribution and productivity of fisheries, increases in outbreaks of organisms such as jellyfish blooms, and increasing invasions of alien species, with case studies to support generic understanding in the Western Mediterranean, North Sea and Baltic Sea.

Marine life makes a substantial contribution to the economy and society of Europe. In reflection of this, VECTORS has been a substantial EU funded project with 38 partner institutes. Through interdisciplinary and integrated research it has addressed changes in marine life, such as changes in distribution and productivity of fisheries, increases in outbreaks of organisms such as jellyfish blooms, and increasing invasions of alien species, with case studies to support generic understanding in the Western Mediterranean, North Sea and Baltic Sea.

VECTORS has revealed many of the drivers, pressures and vectors that cause changes in marine life, the mechanisms by which they do so, the impacts that they have on other parts of the marine ecosystem and its functioning, the services these ecosystems provide, and the social and economic consequences for associated marine sectors and society. New and existing knowledge and insight has been synthesized and integrated to project future changes in marine life, ecosystems and economies under different scenarios for adaptation and mitigation.

VECTORS has developed tools to support the development of strategies to mitigate and respond to marine life changes , these include:

• Specialised databases and tissue repositories for invasive alien and outbreaking species.
• An iPhone app for informing on the occurrence of jellyfish blooms.
• Novel use of risk assessment approaches which have been applied to case studies of marine renewable energy and fisheries.
• Risk assessment and decision support systems for ballast water management.
• Suites of modelling tools for ensemble analysis of ecological, ecosystem, fishery and economic change in response to management strategies.
• Development and implementation of Atlantis, a cross sector framework model, for the first time in the EU waters for management strategy evaluation particularly of multiple stressors.
• Novel application of global models to understand the macro-economic implications of marine life change.

Project partners

• PLYMOUTH MARINE LABORATORY (UK) (LEAD);
• INSTITUT FUER OSTSEEFORSCHUNG WARNEMUENDE AN DER UNIVERSITAET ROSTOCK (DE);
• THE UNIVERSITY COURT OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ST ANDREWS (UK);
• ACONDICIONAMIENTO TARRASENSE ASSOCIACION (ES);
• CONSORZIO NAZIONALE INTERUNIVERSITARIO PER LE SCIENZE DEL MARE ASSOCIAZIONE (IT);
• JOHANN HEINRICH VON THUENEN-INSTITUT, BUNDESFORSCHUNGSINSTITUT FUER LAENDLICHE RAEUME, WALD UND FISCHEREI (DE);
• UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN, NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND, DUBLIN (IE);
• STICHTING WAGENINGEN RESEARCH (NL);
• TARTU ULIKOOL (EE);
• WAGENINGEN UNIVERSITY (NL);
• STICHTING DELTARES (NL);
• THE SECRETARY OF STATE FOR ENVIRONMENT, FOOD AND RURAL AFFAIRS (UK);
• UNIVERSITY OF HULL (UK);
• CONSIGLIO NAZIONALE DELLE RICERCHE (IT);
• ISRAEL OCEANOGRAPHIC AND LIMNOLOGICAL RESEARCH LIMITED (IL);
• INSTITUT FRANCAIS DE RECHERCHE POUR L'EXPLOITATION DE LA MER (FR);
• AALBORG UNIVERSITET (DK);
• UNIVERSITA DI PISA (IT);
• AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS (ES);
• FONDAZIONE ENI ENRICO MATTEI (IT);
• UNIVERSITAET HAMBURG (DE);
• DANMARKS TEKNISKE UNIVERSITET (DK);
• GOLLASCH STEPHAN - GOLLASCH CONSULT (DE);
• UNIVERSITE DE BRETAGNE OCCIDENTALE (FR);
• BANGOR UNIVERSITY (UK);
• KLAIPEDOS UNIVERSITETAS (LT);
• HELLENIC CENTRE FOR MARINE RESEARCH (GR);
• INSTYTUT OCEANOLOGII POLSKIEJ AKADEMII NAUK (PL);
• KONINKLIJKE NEDERLANDSE AKADEMIE VAN WETENSCHAPPEN – KNAW (NL);
• SIR ALISTER HARDY FOUNDATION FOR OCEAN SCIENCE (UK);
• UNIVERSITA DEGLI STUDI DI PAVIA (IT);
• INSTITUT SUPERIEUR DES SCIENCES AGRONOMIQUES, AGROALIMENTAIRES, HORTICOLES ET DU PAYSAGE (FR);
• UNIVERSITE DE ROUEN NORMANDIE (FR);
• Community of European Shipyards Associations asbl (BE)
• UNIVERZA V LJUBLJANI (SI);
• ISTITUTO NAZIONALE DI OCEANOGRAFIA E DI GEOFISICA SPERIMENTALE (IT);
• LEIBNIZ-INSTITUT FUR OSTSEEFORSCHUNG WARNEMUNDE STIFTUNG (DE);
• AARHUS UNIVERSITET (DK);
• COMMISSION INTERNATIONALE POUR L'EXPLORATION SCIENTIFIQUE DE LA MER MEDITERRANEE (CIESM) (MC);
• STICHTING NIOZ, KONINKLIJK NEDERLANDS INSTITUUT VOOR ONDERZOEK DER ZEE (NL).