The ocean is not just a distant, blue expanse; it is our lifeline. Our oceans produce more than half of the oxygen we breathe, regulate our climate, and serve as the foundation of food security and employment for millions of people worldwide. Yet, this precious ecosystem is under immense pressure.
🌡️ Climate change is warming ocean waters, bleaching coral reefs, and shifting fish populations. Marine animals, ranging from fish to penguins and polar bears, are losing their habitats. Closer to home, we see species disappearing from our coastal waters at an alarming rate, oxygen levels dropping, and familiar marine ecosystems transforming.
🔬 Fortunately, there is hope. And this begins with knowledge, science, and research. Scientific studies are crucial in understanding what is changing, why it is happening, and how we can protect our oceans.
🎓 Our marine research trains the next generation of ocean guardians: students who, with passion and determination, seek solutions to today’s and tomorrow’s greatest challenges. From fish stress and oxygen depletion to the migration of (hermit) crabs, they search for answers that matter. Your support enables them to conduct fieldwork, perform analyses, and participate in international internships at leading marine institutes.
Some of our ongoing projects:
- Drifting sea creatures: Why are they migrating further north?
- Oxygen depletion and heatwaves: How much can fish withstand?
- Offshore wind farms: What effects do they have below the surface?
- Stress in a heartbeat: How does chronic stress impact the heart of salmon?
- Sharks in distress: How can we measure stress levels in young sharks?
- Healthy oceans: Developing sensitive toxicity tests for marine organisms.
With your support, we can train tomorrow’s marine scientists, driven, well-prepared, and internationally connected. By investing in ocean research, you directly contribute to biodiversity conservation and a livable future for all.
Join us. Invest in science that protects our planet. Turn the tide.
📢 Interested in a lecture or presentation? You can easily support this via the University Fund—your contribution goes directly to marine research and researchers, not the speaker. This way, sharing knowledge also becomes an act of impact.