Under the warm autumn sun of Rhodes, JPI Oceans’ 34th Management Board and 19th General Assembly reaffirmed the platform’s steady course while sketching its priorities for the years ahead. Over two days hosted by Greece’s Hellenic Centre for Marine Research, delegates reviewed progress, made decisions on Joint Actions, and agreed on steps to strengthen JPI Oceans’ strategic and international reach.
Last thing first: on day two of the meeting, the General Assembly unanimously elected Peter Haugan, Policy Director at the Norwegian Institute of Marine Research, as the new Chair of JPI Oceans. An oceanographer with decades of experience in international science policy, Professor Haugan previously held posts at the IOC-UNESCO and the High-Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy. His appointment comes at a time when the organisation is charting a new course, with the adoption of the Strategy Framework 2026–2030 also taking place during the meeting.
Developed through extensive consultation with member countries and stakeholders, the Strategy Framework refines JPI Oceans’ vision, mission, scope, and approach for the new period. It will officially be launched on 4 December 2025 at the European Parliament, during an event hosted by the SEArica Intergroup: a fitting venue for unveiling a roadmap that will prioritise increased collaboration between research and policy, including the implementation of the European Ocean Pact.
The final months of 2025 will be busy as two major Joint Calls are on the runway. The Blue Carbon call, launched in early November with a total budget of €5.3 million, aims to deepen knowledge of carbon sequestration in coastal and marine ecosystems. The Offshore Freshened Groundwater call, due in December, will open Europe’s first coordinated scientific campaign to study submarine freshwater reserves — a promising but still underexplored natural resource.
The Board also discussed the possibility of a future, second Joint Call on Underwater Noise, building on the results of its first projects and aligned with the upcoming revision of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.
With decisions on Joint Actions made and the compass well calibrated, attention turned to what comes next: where should JPI Oceans explore new ground? Earlier this year, JPI Oceans invited its community to share ideas for potential future Joint Actions. After an initial review, ten concepts moved on for further consideration, and Management Board members were tasked with balancing scientific ambition, novelty, and suitability for JPI Oceans to add value where others cannot. By the end of the meeting, one topic stood out for scoping, and two for further exploration.
An idea focused on plastic-associated chemical pollution, building on the legacy of JPI Oceans’ pioneering work on microplastics, is invited for full scoping. Another suggests looking at the effects of electromagnetic fields, derived from expanding offshore infrastructure, on marine environments. A third topic that raised interest combines perspectives from different submissions and aims to build an integrated understanding of how human-made infrastructures (such as offshore wind farms) interact with ocean processes. The Board agreed to invite the latter two for a deeper conversation before reconsidering their suitability and feasibility.
Overall, the exercise reaffirmed one of JPI Oceans’ main strengths: its ability to convene resources around questions that fall between disciplinary or institutional silos in a research landscape often shaped by fragmented funding lines.
Beyond its member countries, the meeting welcomed several European and international partners. Representatives from the European Commission’s Directorates-General for Research (DG RTD), Maritime Affairs (DG MARE) and the Joint Research Centre (JRC) attended to share updates on upcoming files such as the Ocean Act, the 10th Framework Programme (FP10) and the Ocean Observing Initiative, while the Directorates-Generals for the Environment (ENV) and Climate Action (CLIMA) sent contributions about the planned revision of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive and the preparation of a Climate Risk Assessment and an Adaptation Plan. The Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership’s Coordinator, Margherita Cappelletto, presented how partnerships may evolve under the EU’s forthcoming FP10. Finally, participants heard from the recently-launched International Platform for Ocean Sustainability, with both sides expressing interest in future collaboration.
The Rhodes meeting underscored JPI Oceans’ dual identity: deeply European, yet increasingly global. Almost fifteen years after its founding, the organisation is steering confidently into its next chapter — guided by renewed leadership, a fresh strategy, and a network that continues to evolve in response to changing times.