In 2018, the Belmont Forum, JPI Oceans and Future Earth joined forces and launched a call for proposals under the Collaborative Research Action (CRA) on Transdisciplinary Research for Ocean Sustainability. Adopting a transdisciplinary and cross-sectoral approach, the CRA aimed at bringing together researchers and other expertise across the globe to promote innovative solutions for the sustainable use of ocean resources and climate change mitigation. Such effort falls under the framework of Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goal 14 on the conservation and sustainable use of oceans, seas and marine resources.
The international call resulted in the agreement by funding organizations (see below) to award 13 international consortia of researchers and stakeholders with a total of € 14 250 000 (plus in-kind contributions) over a period of four years. On 11 February 2020, the Belmont Forum announced the recipients of such funding, as reported below:
- Salt-Mine | Beyond freshwater generation: Mineral extraction from seawater desalination brine and seawater greenhouse farming | Kuria Ndungu (Norway)
- ARMSRestore | ARMS to reefs: A new tool to restore coral reef biodiversity, fisheries yields, and human health in Madagascar | Aaron Hartmann (USA)
- MARISCO | Marine Research and Innovation for a Sustainable management of Coasts and Oceans | Helmut Hillebrand (Germany)
- OCEANS PACT | OCEAN Sustainability Pathways for Achieving Conflict Transformation | Michael Gilek (Sweden)
- COAST | Coastal OceAn SusTainability in Changing Climate | Sergey Gulev (Russia
- OA-ME | Evaluation, Mitigation and Adaptation of Impacts of Ocean Acidification to Marine Ecosystems | Hajime Kayanne (Japan)
- MULTI-FRAME | Assessment Framework for successful development of viable ocean multi-use systems | Susanne Altvater (Germany)
- ShipTRASE | Global Shipping: Linking policy and economics to biogeochemical cycling and air-sea interaction | Anna Rutgersson (Sweden)
- OceanFrontCHANGE | Managing Ocean Front Ecosystems for Climate Change | Lee Hannah (USA)
- PolyCone | Integrated and sustainable regulation of cones in Eastern Polynesia | Tamatoa Bambridge (France)
- COAST Card | Coastal Ocean Assessment for Sustainability and Transformation | William Dennison (USA)
- NO CRISES | Negotiating Ocean Conflicts among RIvals for Sustainable and Equitable Solutions | Ingrid van Putten (Australia)
- EXEBUS | Ecological and Economic impacts of the intensification of extreme events in the Benguela Upwelling System | Albertus Smit (South Africa)
- Australia | Oceans and Atmosphere, CSIRO
- Brazil | São Paulo Research Foundation, FAPESP
- France | National Research Agency, ANR
- Germany | Federal Ministry of Education and Research, BMBF
- Iceland | Icelandic Centre for Research, RANNIS
- India | Ministry of Earth Sciences, MoES
- Japan | Japan Science and Technology Agency, JST
- Norway | Research Council of Norway
- Philippines | Department of Science and Technology, DOST-PCIEERD
- Russia | Russian Foundation for Basic Research, RFBR
- Saudi Arabia | King Abdullah University of Science and Technology, KAUST
- South Africa | National Research Foundation, NRF
- Sweden | Swedish Research Council for Env, Agric Sci & Spatial Planning, FORMAS
- Sweden/for East African countries | Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, SIDA
- USA/International | Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, BOEM
- USA | National Science Foundation, NSF