Mediterranean Science Commission

CIESM-Commission Int. pour l’Exploration Scientifique de la mer Méditerranée
CIESM was founded in 1910 to federate marine research and explorations across the Mediterranean and Black Seas. Working at the frontiers of marine science, and supported by 23 Member States, the Commission keeps a scientific watch over the Mediterranean and Black Seas, relying on a pool of vast human resources - 4,200 marine scientists distributed in some 500 research institutes around the whole Basin. CIESM produces authoritative, independent reports on the status and trends of their marine systems. These widely-read Monographs cover a diversity of issues, from coastal erosion to deepsea research, from the role of cetaceans to that of marine viruses, from the bioaccumulation of novel contaminants to mesoscale processes.
CIESM manages a great variety of research programs on key parameters, focused on:unprecedented changes in marine biodiversity through CIESM Programmes on ‘Exotic Species’, ‘Tropicalization’ - extension/ retreat of sensitive, indicator species) and ‘Jellywatch’ (extent of massive jellyfish outbreaks); climatic change through the Programmes ‘MedGLOSS’ (setting an alert system for Mediterranean tsunamis), ‘Hydrochanges’ (deepsea warming trends) and ‘Zooplankton Indicators’; deep waters of poorly known areas of the Mediterranean Sea via multi-disciplinary, multi-national CIESM-SUB oceanographic cruises; novel contaminants in foodwebs via its MusselWatch Programme; the Mediterranean seabed with high-resolution CIESM / Ifremer maps; and blue biotechnologies with special attention to ethical issues (property rights, equal access) and technological capacity building on south shore.