The 37th CIESM Congress was held at the new Convention Center of Forum 2004 in Barcelona, from 7 to 11 June 2004. It was the first time in 18 years that the Congress had returned to Spain.

The Congress was attended by some 700 scientists who presented over 500 communications covered in the six committees, with much discussion of CIESM current and future activities. The scientific program was extensive, touching on all aspects of marine sciences.

Among the highlights of the week :

In his inaugural speech, the President of CIESM, H.S.H. Prince Albert of Monaco, highlighted the rare spirit of dialogue and cooperation across cultures which is a trademark of the Commission.

 

Inauguration

 

 

 

 

 

 

Legend: the President of CIESM, H.S.H. Prince Albert of Monaco, surrounded by (from left to right), M.J. Sansegundo, Minister for the Education and the Culture, J. Clos, Mayor of Barcelona and F. Doumenge (Secretary General).
Photo: P. Gerriz

The Board expressed a unanimous vote of confidence for the governance of the Commission by the Director General Prof. Frédéric Briand, and renewed the mandate of the Secretary General, Prof. François Doumenge, until the 38th Congress.

For the period 2004 - 2007, the CIESM Advisory Committee ('Comité Restreint'), elected by the Board, shall be composed of France, Greece, Malta, Monaco, Spain, Tunisia and Turkey.

Elections of Committee Chairs. Were elected, by secret ballot:

  • Dr Dimitri Sakellariou (Greece), chair, committee C1;
  • Dr Jordi Font (Spain), chair, committee C2;
  • Prof. Nicholas Fisher (USA), chair, committee C3;
  • Prof. Gerhard Herndl (Austria), chair, committee C4;
  • Prof. Bella Galil (Israel), and Prof. Kostas Stergiou (Greece), co-chairs, committee C5;
  • Prof. Maria Snoussi (Morocco), chair, committee C6.

Morning sessions were devoted to the various CIESM Programs: Hydro-Changes; Mediterranean Mussel Watch; MedGLOSS; Marine Mammals; Deep Sea Research; Zooplankton Indicators; PORTAL.

The best poster prize was awarded to Dr Chiara Santinelli and to her co-authors, from the University of Pisa, for her communication on Dissolved organic carbon in the Ionian Sea as function of water mass circulation. The jury (i.e. the chairs of the six committees) was particularly sensitive to the interdisciplinarity of this work between physics and biology, and to the dynamism and availability of the main author during the whole session.
A special prize of the Jury was awarded to the poster presented by Dr Elisabeta Chirila and her co-authors, from 'Ovidius' University in Constantza, Romania, for her communication entitled About accumulation factors of Cd, Cr, Cu and Pb in the Black Sea coast biota.

 

Poster Prize

 

 

 

 

 

Legend : the winner of the Best Poster Prize, Dr Chiara Santinelli, surrounded by Prince Albert of Monaco and by some members of the Jury.
From left to right: Kostas Stergiou (co-chair, C5), Angelo Tursi (departing chair, C5), Alex Lascaratos (departing chair, C2), Frédéric Briand (Director General) and Jean Mascle (departing chair, C1).
Photo: CIESM

There were many productive round-table sessions. All brief reports are available.

  • Cartographie multifaisceaux et imagerie acoustique : synthèse méditerranéenne (pdf file 162 Ko);
  • Mediterranean Musselwatch (pdf file 437 Ko);
  • Harmonization of zooplankton time series (pdf file 167 Ko);
  • Archaeological and (pre)historical records;
  • Priorities for Mediterranean Deep Sea Research;
  • Cetacean distribution: data collection and use (pdf file 114 Ko);
  • Port survey of ship-transported alien species (pdf file 310 Ko);
  • Operational Oceanography: achievements and perspectives (pdf file 60 Ko);
  • Hydrological trends (pdf file 70 Ko);
  • Protecting Mediterranean High Sea and Deep Sea (pdf file 63 Ko);
  • Erosion côtière et réhabilitation écologique (pdf file 101 Ko).

The Congressists were the hosts of the CIESM President at a reception on 7 June in the splendid Llotja del Mar.

The closing of the Congress was marked by a reception offered by the Spanish Authorities in the gardens of the Royal Pedralbes Palace (see photo below).

 
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Photo: CIESM