Visit of the EU Commissioner Karmenu Vella

On the 8^th of July, the EU Commissioner for Environment and Maritime Affairs and Fisheries, Karmenu Vella, visited the InnovOcean site in Ostend. The EU Commissioner signed an agreement on the cooperation for marine observation data with the Flemish government and Flanders Marine Institute (VLIZ). With this, the Commission underlines their engagement for a sustainable blue economy and jobs based on science, data and innovation. The Flemish government engages to further support the European Marine Observation and Data network (EMODnet), via VLIZ, by housing the secretariat and by technical and scientific support for the development of an online portal and services for data users.

During the guided tour through the InnovOcean buildings, the Compendium for Coast and Sea was thoroughly brought to the attention of the EU Commissioner. The Compendium was also presented to the representatives of the Executive Agency of SME’s (EASME) on the 29^th of June during their visit of the InnovOcean site.