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Scientific Advisory Committee

The role of the Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) is to develop and oversee the implementation of OBON’s strategy, inter alia by: 

  1. Developing and overseeing activities that contribute towards the aims, objectives, and desired outcomes of OBON
  2. Providing expert scientific guidance and advice to OBON
  3. Guiding scientific capacity development/strengthening, technological innovation, and development of a data strategy
  4. Evaluating project proposals for UN Ocean Decade endorsement under OBON
  5. Taking advice from the User Advisory Committee to guide scientific activities in delivering information to support wise decision-making 
  6. Ensuring that early-career ocean professionals shape the programme’s future. 
  7. Establishing and delegating to a smaller Executive Committee the more frequent monitoring of OBON’s progress and prioritisation of activities.

The SAC is composed of up to 22 members elected by existing SAC members, with the intention to achieve geographical diversity, gender balance, and a broad range of expertise and experience (including career stage). SAC Meetings are held bimonthly in virtual mode, and once annually in-person or in hybrid mode.

Scientific Advisory Committee Members

  • Pier Luigi Buttigieg, Helmholtz Metadata Collaboration / GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research, Germany
  • Raffaella Casotti, Zoological Station Anton Dohrn, Naples, Italy
  • Francisco Chavez, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, USA
  • Neil Davies, University of California Berkeley, Moorea, French Polynesia
  • Kelly Goodwin, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, USA
  • Sophie von der Heyden, University of Stellenbosch, South Africa
  • Tadashi Kajita, Iriomote Station, Tropical Biosphere Research Center, the University of the Ryukyus, Japan
  • Margaret Leinen, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California-San Diego, USA
  • Christopher Meyer, Smithsonian Inst, USA (ML2030 liaison)
  • Raïssa Meyer, Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research, Bremerhaven, Germany
  • Hassan Moustahfid, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), USA
  • Kathleen Pitz, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, USA
  • Julie Robidart, National Oceanography Centre, UK
  • Robyn Mairin Samuel, Ocean and Earth Science, National Oceanography Centre Southampton, University of Southampton, UK
  • Sophie Seeyave, Partnership for Observation of the Global Ocean (POGO), Plymouth, UK (ex officio)
  • Aileen Tan Shau Hwai, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia
  • Camila Negrão Signori, University of São Paulo, Brazil
  • Jodie van de Kamp, Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australia
  • Willie Wilson, Marine Biological Association, UK
  • Kevan Yamahara, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, USA

Executive Committee

The role of the Executive Committee (ExCom) is  to:

  • Provide guidance to the Programme Coordination Office (PCO) on day-to-day operations and activities
  • Act as a sounding board for requests from the Decade Coordination Unit (DCU), particularly where deadlines are too tight to allow full consultation with the SAC
  • Review progress on OBON activities and Action Items between SAC meetings 
  • Identify and pursue additional partnerships and funding opportunities
  • Ensure that actions/projects/events are aligned with the aims and objectives of OBON, and with the priorities set by the User Advisory Committee.

The ExCom is composed of the Chair of the SAC, four other SAC members (appointed for up to one year), and a representative of POGO, and meets biweekly in virtual mode.

Executive Committee Members

  • Margaret Leinen (Chair)
  • Julie Robidart
  • Jodie van de Kamp
  • Sophie von der Heyden
  • Willie Wilson
  • Sophie Seeyave (ex-officio, POGO)

User Advisory Committee

To ensure the programme’s scientific mission is linked to well-defined societal needs, OBON will also convene a User Advisory Committee (UAC) to identify where and how this programme can best serve society and advise on linking user communities.

The UAC is in the process of being established.

User Advisory Committee Members

  • Being established
Image of SAC members on Plymouth Hoe, 2021
SAC Members’ meeting in Plymouth, UK, November 2021

Working Groups

  • Data Strategy Working Group
  • Technology Development Working Group
  • Capacity Development Working Group
  • Observations Working Group
OBON is a UN Ocean Decade endorsed programme, led by POGO.
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