SINTEF, one of Europe's largest independent research institutes, has been at the forefront of innovation since 1950, focusing on technology, natural sciences, and social sciences. With approximately 2,200 employees from 80 countries and an annual turnover exceeding four billion Norwegian kroner, SINTEF reinvests its profits into research and development to enhance societal well-being. Among its six institutes, SINTEF Ocean specializes in marine technology and bio marine research, striving to maintain Norway's leadership in sustainable ocean use. The organization collaborates with various stakeholders to develop solutions for challenges faced in ocean industries, which are expected to double in value by 2030.
In the SEADOTs project, SINTEF Ocean leads project management and scientific coordination. The initiative includes teams focusing on social-ecological modeling, data management, and the development of digital ocean twins (DOTs) for effective decision-making in marine environments. A significant aspect of SEADOTs involves the demonstrator case of Utsira, Norway’s smallest municipality, which aims to grow its population through offshore wind energy initiatives. Utsira is notable for hosting the world's first wind-hydrogen power system and serves as a critical area for birdwatching.
The Utsira Nord offshore wind development area is a vital part of Norway's renewable energy strategy, designated for floating wind projects with a capacity of 3 GW. SEADOTs intends to apply Ostrom’s governance model to Utsira, promoting sustainable policymaking in this ecologically sensitive region, thereby advancing innovative solutions for ocean management and conservation.
Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon conducts international cutting-edge research for a changing world: approximately 1,000 employees generate knowledge and innovation to facilitate more resilience and sustainability. Hereon’s scientific spectrum encompasses high-performance materials, processes and environmentally friendly technologies for mobility and new energy systems. Furthermore, research is conducted on biomaterials for medicine and for increasing the quality of life. Through research and consulting, Hereon addresses the challenges of climate change in a solution-oriented manner and facilitates sustainable management as well as the protection of the coasts and marine environment through comprehensive scientific understanding. From basic understanding to practical applications – the interdisciplinary research center covers a unique spectrum.
Stockholm Resilience Centre (SRC) is a research centre in sustainability science with a mission to advance the scientific understanding of the complex, dynamic interactions of people and nature in the biosphere; train the next generation of sustainability researchers and leaders; and engage in collaborations with change agents. The Centre brings people together from around the world to research, study and collaborate, for a thriving and resilient biosphere that enables well-being for all. SRC is a collaboration between Stockholm University (SU) and the Beijer Institute of Ecological Economics at the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. In SEADOTS, SRC is responsible for the Baltic Sea Pilot, as well as having an instrumental role in incorporating social-ecological systems thinking into the DTO framework within WP2.
The University of Iceland, founded in 1911, is the preeminent teaching and research University in Iceland. It is a state university, situated in the heart of Reykjavík, the capital of Iceland. A modern, diversified and rapidly developing institution, the University of Iceland offers opportunities for study and research in almost 400 programs spanning most fields of science and scholarship. The University employs over 1.600 people (FTE) and has over 15.000 students about 2/5 of whom are pursuing post graduate research degrees.
The University of Iceland is by far the largest research institution in Iceland. It has been ranked in the top 500 on the Times Higher Education Ranking for the past 11 years. It is particularly strong in geological, natural resources and medical research.
The University of Iceland has participated in numerous research projects funded by the European Union. It is currently participating in 61 Horizon 2020 projects, either as a coordinator or a partner and in 18 Horizon Europe projects either as a coordinator or a partner, thereof coordinating 6 ERC grants.
Zentrix Lab (ZEN) utilises its digital twin and IoT expertise to lead technical work development of the Digital Twin Ocean (DTO) framework and decision-support tools within the SEADOTS project. Zentrix’s responsibilities include defining technical requirements, crafting “what-if” scenario tools, and developing digital tools to enhance marine spatial planning and support sustainable decision-making. By integrating socio-ecological and oceanographic data into accessible formats, Zentrix will develop the decision support service to enable policymakers and stakeholders to engage with data-driven insights relevant to marine management. Zentrix also plays a crucial role in defining use cases, functional requirements, and supporting the European DTO framework's pilot demonstrations, ensuring the tools are tailored to diverse stakeholder needs.
The International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) is an intergovernmental marine science organization, meeting societal needs for impartial evidence on the state and sustainable use of our seas and oceans.
Our goal is to advance and share scientific understanding of marine ecosystems and the services they provide and to use this knowledge to generate state-of-the-art advice for meeting conservation, management, and sustainability goals.
We are a network of nearly 6000 scientists from over 700 marine institutes in our 20 member countries and beyond. Over 2500 scientists participate in our activities annually.
In Seadots ICES play a key role in providing training, guidance on ocean governance and aligning Seadots outputs with real-world marine policy needs.
The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) is a global association with the mission to advance the development and adoption of open standards for geospatial information and services. Bringing together industry leaders, governments, and academia, OGC creates standards and works out best practices to enhance the accessibility, usability, and effectiveness of geospatial data, ultimately supporting informed decision-making and sustainable development worldwide. It is fostering interoperability among diverse geospatial systems, enabling seamless data sharing and integration across various applications and platforms,
The Open Geospatial Consortium (OGC) leads the work on data interoperability in the SEADOTS project, guiding the integration of social and economic data sources. Facilitating the adoption of standardized protocols for data exchange with the EDITO and EOSC, OGC ensures that diverse datasets can seamlessly interact with analytical models. Setting a precedent for collaboration beyond the geospatial community enriches its own suite of standards by incorporating insights from socio-ecological modeling. This integration highlights the relevance of socio-ecological data in contemporary geospatial practices, enhancing the OGC community’s approach to addressing environmental challenges.
In the long term, data accessibility and establishing quality indicators further contribute to the reliability and effectiveness of socio-ecological analyses. By aligning its standards with the needs of SEADOTS, OGC strengthens its role as a leader in the field, ensuring that the project’s outcomes resonate beyond the geospatial community and advance sustainable practices in marine and coastal management.
GEOMAR is one of 19 Helmholtz Centres in Germany that undertake research in any aspect of science. GEOMAR is one of three marine centres within Helmholtz, mainly working in the open ocean, but in some cases also close to shore. GEOMAR covers many aspects of marine research, ranging from physical oceanography, marine meteorology, geology and geophysics, benthic and pelagic biogeochemistry to biology and microbiology. In addition to its scientific tasks, GEOMAR operates large scale equipment, among them three AUVs, two ROVs and smaller systems like mobile multibeam systems, a large number of lander-based and seafloor deployable camera systems and many others. GEOMAR is the leading Institution of the UN Ocean Decade programme “DITTO - Digital Twins of the Ocean” and will support the integration of SEADOTs in the UN Ocean Decade and in the DITTO programme in particular.
Role in SEADOTs
GEOMAR leads the SEADOTs’ Task 2 in the Work Package 5 on ENGAGEMENT: Stakeholder engagement, Dissemination, and Exploitation (5.2: Ecosystem bootstrap, Cluster, and Collaboration with the UN Decade for Ocean Science Program DITTO and Integration of SeaDots Outputs into DITTO Initiatives (M1-M36); [Lead: GEOMAR; Participants: HEREON, INTRA, SU, HIIS, ICES])
NETCOMPANY-INTRASOFT is a leading European IT Solutions and Services company with proven expertise in conceptual system architecture and system design, advanced application development and integration / communication services, information portal management, communication services, and project management, offering innovative and added-value solutions of the highest quality to a wide range of international and national public and private organizations.
Furthermore, NETCOMPANY-INTRASOFT based on its expertise is responsible for undertaking and coordinating the activities of Stakeholder Engagement, Dissemination, and Exploitation activities in the SEADOTs project. NETCOMPANY-INTRASOFT's (INTRA) will ensure effective communication and outreach of project results, focusing on engaging stakeholders, disseminating findings to a broader audience, and identifying opportunities to exploit project outcomes. This includes taking charge of the Dissemination, Communication, and Exploitation efforts to maximize the project's impact across various domains.