​​​​​​​​Traditional ocean management approaches often focus on fixed territories,​​ single impacts (fisheries, offshore renewables, climate change) or single species. With a growing appreciation for system complexity, different approaches have been developed to consider all moving parts of the ecosystem: human and non-human elements, other mobile entanglements, and their interdependencies. Ecosystem-based management (EBM) approaches exist, but exact frameworks, methods and alternatives are not often taught, especially in early-career positions.

To this end, ICES Strategic Initiative on the Integration of Early Career Scientists (SIIECS) has partnered with Mission Atlantic, a European Union (EU) funded project, for InterDis 25​ "Integrated ecosystem assessment: an interdisciplinary tool for ecosystem-based marine management and advice". IEA is an important tool for EBM, used to balance the impacts and benefits of management decisions on the different components of the ecosystem. Due to the wide-reaching nature of IEA, interdisciplinary collaboration between scientists, coastal communities, communicators, industry, and policymakers is needed more than ever. InterDis 25 represents an opportunity for early-career professionals to gain practical interdisciplinary experience, which will prove valuable not only for their careers but also for marine conservation.

Connections

Robert Mussgnug, a member of SIIECS, is organizing the follow-up to the successful first edition of InterDis summer school, held in 2023. "We are organizing this summer school to bridge the gap between three points: science, advice, and action. As scientists, many of us address the management of marine systems, and we see our contributions incorporated into, for example, ICES advice process. However, moving on toward actionable policy is often more of an obscure transition. This is especially true for early-career scientists and other young ocean professionals contributing to the study of an individual component that is linked within a larger system. This is where interdisciplinary techniques such as integrated ecosystem management become invaluable tools which this next generation of ocean managers will need to address current and future challenges on whole systems."

Partnering with Mission Atlantic

Mission Atlantic is an EU Horizon 2020-funded project that promotes integrated ecosystem assessment (IEA), particularly in the Atlantic ecosystems. The project includes scientists, industry, and policy-makers across 14 countries, making it an ideal co-organizer, as EBM is rooted in collaboration across disciplines, borders, and ecosystems.

​​​​IEA group project

With InterDis 25, SIIECS and Mission Atlantic want to amplify the capacity of the next generation of early-career marine professionals to solve complex issues for a sustainable future. 

From Sunday 10 August until Friday 15 August, in Copenhagen, Denmark, InterDis 25 will train participants in using IEA and interdisciplinary methods through an interactive combination of instructional lectures and hands-on activities. ​

This capacity development will be done by first teaching participants the necessary tools for interdisciplinarity and ecosystem-based assessment. The realisation of a small group project using the IEA approach will be the perfect opportunity to foster interdisciplinary cross-sector collaboration and allow participants to put the taught concepts into practice.

Mussgnug says, "What we aim to deliver to participants is a dynamic, practical experience that will give them a solid knowledge base from which they can launch their first forays into EBM techniques. We are very fortunate to partner with Mission Atlantic, as this gives us access to a roster of speakers who are actively engaged in management challenges and can ​provide first-hand insights." 

Attendees can expect a busy schedule with lectures, practical components, and interaction with professionals and on-the-ground stakeholders. Of course, another goal is to expand networks, so there will be plenty of time to socialize!

Who can apply?

There are 32 places available at InterDis 25. Applications are due by midnight (CET) on 15 May 2025. All early-career ocean professionals are eligible to apply. Early career is defined according to the SIIECS resolution​, namely having conferred their most recent college degree within the last 10 years.

Apply for InterDis 25 summer school now!

SIIECS would like to extend a special thanks to our collaborators at DTU​ and Mission Atlantic - in particular, Debbi Pedreschi (Mission Atlantic) and Ivo Grigorov (DTU) - as well as SIIECS members Robert Mussgnug, Daniel Ottman and Sinja Rist.​

​​Take a look back at the first InterDis summer school in 2023.