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EMB Executive Director Sheila Heymans is a co-author in one of three new papers presenting a new tool for assessing the impacts of reduced nutrient inflow into European rivers and the ocean. This work has relevance for the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the achievement of Good Environmental Status in European waters.

Scientists have proposed the first steps towards a united global plan to save our ocean, for the sake of human health. In a commentary paper published in the American Journal of Public Health the researchers, including co-authors from the European Marine Board Secretariat, call for the current UN Ocean Decade to act as a meaningful catalyst for global change, reminding us that ocean health is intricately linked to human health.

Ana Rodriguez joined the EMB Secretariat on Monday 3 May 2021 as a Science Officer. Ana Rodriguez (PhD 2019) obtained a B.Sc. degree in Biology at the Eberhard-Karls University of Tübingen (Germany) and subsequently completed an international M.Sc. in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation at Ghent University (Belgium), Galway-Mayo Institute of Technology (Ireland) and Anton-de-Kom University (Suriname). She conducted her joint PhD degree at Heriot-Watt University and University of St Andrews (UK). Ana has experience working on marine conservation topics at WWF as well as at the European Commission. At EMB, she will take on the new upcoming H2020 project EcoScope which will focus on ecosystem-based management of fisheries, as well as other activities within the Secretariat.

In the run-up to the EMB Spring Plenary 2021 meeting, this social media campaign highlights the connections between those who have a link to EMB, even though meeting in person is still not possible. Anyone with a link to EMB is invited to engage on Twitter, Instagram or Facebook!

The IOG Forum published it's final recommendations from the stakeholder consultation process during the 3rd IOG Forum online event on 20th April 2021. The document 'Setting the Course for a Sustainble Blue Planet: Recommendations for Enhancing EU Action' sets the course for a clean, healthy, productive, resilient and understood ocean by providing recommended actions for updating the EU's IOG Agenda. Increased global ambition for conservation, restoration, and sustainable use of marine ecosystems and biodiversity; integrated sustainability goals within the blue economy; a 'whole of ocean governance approach' to combating climate change; adoption of nature-based solutions; and increased coordination for ocean observations are among the key recommended actions.

The European Marine Board (EMB) invites applications for the position of Executive and Finance Officer. The EMB Executive and Finance Officer is employed by the Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ) as part of a package of support provided by the Government of Flanders in hosting EMB at the InnovOcean site. The successful candidate will join the EMB Secretariat based at the InnovOcean campus in the port of Ostend, Belgium.

We are delighted to introduce our two new EMB Young Ambassadors! We can now announce that Rebecca Zitoun, a PostDoc from EMB Member the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ) in the Netherlands, and Anjali Gopakumar, a PhD student at the University of Bologna in Italy, and an EMB member via CoNISMa, have been selected! You can find out more about them here. We look forward to working with them.

The 7^th EMB Forum Proceedings were published today and provide a summary of the discussions that took place online on 23rd October 2020, along with key messages. The 7th EMB Forum provided the opportunity to reflect on the role of big data in advancing marine science to support recent policy developments i.e. the European Green Deal, the EU 2030 Biodiversity Strategy, and the development of a Digital Twin Ocean (DTO). 192 participants from Europe and further afield were present, representing academia, government, industry, and NGOs. Experts gave presentations and participated in panel discussions with audience interaction. Full recordings of the sessions are available on the EMB YouTube Channel.