Citizen Science

C2B2 – Co-Creating Better Blue

Baltic Sea, Citizen Science, Data, Environmental management, Innovation, People, Sweden, Workshop / January 18, 2023

In December 2022 came the news that Mistra (the Swedish Foundation for Strategic Environmental Research) will fund the new programme C2B2 – Co-Creating Better Blue. The consortium behind C2B2 include many actors from the network around SCOOT and Ocean Data Factory Sweden. The programme C2B2 is initially funded for 4 years.

The maritime domain and the blue economy are in an exciting and transformative period, not least manifested by the rapid expansion of offshore installations. Both challenges and opportunities abound… C2B2 identifies co-creation as the most important tool for sustainability in human activities at sea. 38 maritime actors from industry, academia, public sector and civil society will start working together in C2B2, and the programme will be open for more to join. Feel free to contact C2B2 programme director Torsten Linders.

I want to know more about C2B2

Mistra’s expectations are clear:

Sustainable blue economy and governance should be at the center of the research program. An ecosystem-based approach should be the basis for and constitute an essential part of the understanding, management and governance of existing and potential future human activities, primarily outside coastal areas. Methods and instruments that can minimize conflicts and identify synergy effects are of particular importance in this context, for example marine spatial planning. Industrial operations at sea can be of great importance for the development of a sustainable blue economy, provided that the operations are planned and conducted in a sustainable manner. Not least new innovative companies could have a role in this transition.

Central to the C2B2 approach is the LivingLabs co-creation methodology, applied to the development of three demonstration cases to trigger transformative changes towards participatory ocean governance, involving relevant sectors and actors in Sweden’s three marine basins (Gulf of Bothnia, Baltic Proper, Kattegatt-Skagerrak).

We have to start thinking differently about the marine environment, and we have to do it together!
Uta Wehn, Associate Professor at IHE Delft Institute for Water Education Scientific Director of C2B2 and leader of WP4 Co-creation of participatory ocean governance in LivingLabs

The programme C2B2 has been designed under the leadership of Uta Wehn during her time as Adlerbert visiting professor in marine citizen science at the University of Gothenburg. The programme is built around three pillars:

  1. Open ecosystems & climate science,
  2. Open, data-driven
    innovation & emerging technologies,
  3. Ocean governance & adaptive management.

Uta Wehn will be the Scientific Director and leader of WP4 Co-creation of participatory ocean governance in LivingLabs.

We have so many important actors already in the programme, spanning the relevant sectors. This means we have a real chance of making a difference for the sustainable blue economy.
Mikael Lind, Senior Research Advisor at RISE Leader of WP2 Open, data-driven innovation & emerging technologies

Maritime Cluster annual conference 8 December

ASV, Citizen Science, People, Platform, SP SeaCat, Sweden / January 10, 2023

December 8 it is the time for the annual conference of Maritime Cluster of West Sweden. This year we highlight some of the most discussed sustainable trends right now: Offshore wind power, sailing cargo vessels and citizen science. SCOOT is co-hosting the event together with Region Västra Götaland, University of Gothenburg, Chalmers, RISE, SMTF, Ocean Data Factory Sweden and SSPA. The conference language is mainly Swedish. 

Preliminary Programme

08.30 – 09.00 Registration and coffee

Block I

09.00 – 10.00 Offshore wind power
• Overview and current status – including the permit process
• The state of technology in offshore wind power

10.00 – 10.30 Morning coffee

10.30 – 11.00 Offshore wind power (continued)
• The actor perspective – an actor on the international market
• The political perspective

11.00 – 12.00 Wind propulsion
• Overview and current status
• Technology overview of wind-assisted and wind-driven ships, with examples from ships in operation
• The supplier perspective of system solutions for wind propulsion
• An example of a concept for a wind-powered ship
• The cargo owner’s perspective on wind-powered ships

12.00 – 13.00 Mingle lunch

Block II

13.00 – 14.00 Maritime citizen science
• What is marine citizen science? Current examples from Ocean Data Factory Sweden.
• Test here and now! Deployment of an autonomous measuring sensor with the help of a surface-moving robot.
• Where does this lead? How do we build knowledge about the sea?
• What knowledge about the sea do we need?

14.30 – 15.00 Maritime Cluster in West Sweden: The future?
• Information, discussion and input from the participants about wishes for the cluster’s future development.

15.00 – 15.30 Afternoon coffee

Fishing for Data

Citizen Science, Data, Demo, Environmental monitoring, Fishing vessels, Innovation, Platform, Ship of opprtunity / February 10, 2022

The ocean is desperately under-sampled. Remember, we cannot forecast what we do not monitor. The problem of under-sampling is often stated about the deep ocean, but it is also very much the fact in the coastal ocean, as well in the marginal ice zone. These regions are characterized by high economical and societal value, and by high biological activity, including fish.

Collecting enough of data to describe these dynamic regions using standard research vessels would be extremely expensive. Robots struggle here as well, because of strong currents, ice, shallow water, risk of collision with vessels, etc. However, where there is fish, there is fishery… Why not employ fishing vessels to collect ocean data? Berring Data Collective is doing exactly that. SCOOT partner SMHI (Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute) is supporting the effort to bring “Fishing for Data” to Sweden. A number of Swedish fishing vessels have expressed interest, stay tuned…

The beauty of Fishing for Data is the cost-effectiveness. Just by attaching some robust sensors, and then doing their usual fishing activity, these vessels put near real-time data into open portals and aggregators, such as EMODnet and Copernicus Marine Services. This is where the computers of operational forecasters (such as SMHI) automatically go to find the data that feed their models. This also where ocean and climate scientists find data.

More about Fishing for Data

Technology for Marine Citizen Science

Citizen Science, Data, Demo, Fishing vessels, Innovation, Sensors, Ship of opprtunity, Workshop / December 22, 2021

On December 16th SCOOT had invited a passionate group of people to the Kristineberg research station. During an intense and hands on workshop we got demonstrations of new equipment and methods for ocean data acquisition. Not the tools that many professional oceanographers are familiar with, but the kind of technology that open up the field of ocean data collection to many, many more than before. This is citizen science, and there are strong reasons to believe that it will transform marine science. (This workshop was the second event under the banner of Ocean Data for Ocean Health. You may remember the ODOH conference SCOOT co-arranged last year?)

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During the workshop we looked at sensors and at apps that are suitable for a wide range of users, including fishermen, boaters and basically anyone in contact with the ocean.

  • Berring Data Collective demonstrated how local fisheries can put sensors on their gear, collecting data useful both for their own fishery and for oceanographic research.
  • Deepoid AB demonstrated their miniature loggers for ocean currents, temperature and light. Super easy to deploy on a moored line and endurable thanks to low power consumption.
  • Sailing 4 Science showed castaway CTD, an easy-to-use instrument that quickly delivers a vertical profile of temperature and salinity.
  • SMHI presented the app EyeOnWater from MARIS and others. The app allows anyone can upload photos of the sea-surface to help capture the ocean color, an important parameter for determining particle content and presence of algae.
  • Maranics AB presented an app for the project Algal Blooms Sweden, which invites anyone to share images and observations of blooms in the ocean.

New technologies open new opportunities for observing the ocean, that is wonderful… But that does not immediately translate into action, or impact for that matter! We discussed at length how and why broader groups of our society can be engaged in building knowledge about the ocean. Uta Wehn, from University of Gothenburg and IHE Delft, has long experience in this field and led us in the discussion. We were joined online by John Tumpane from Formas, who pointed out that citizen science has an important role in the UN Decade of Ocean Science for a Sustainable Development.

Marine Citizen Science is about co-creating ocean knowledge, it is about a radically more democratic ocean science and ocean governance. Are the current actors in academia and public agencies ready for that?
Uta Wehn Professor of Marine Citizen Science

More about (marine) citizen science

New actors, new ideas, new sensors!

Citizen Science, Innovation, People, Sensors / December 21, 2021

We must get more players into the water, more actors into doing technology for ocean measurements… That is why we started SCOOT and that is why we:

  1. Put resources in the hands of entrepreneurs.
  2. Connect entrepreneurs with new partners from industry, academia and the public sector.

Let us give you a small example of how it can work:

A new sensor for ocean currents
from Deepoid AB

  • Anna Willstrand Wranne, leader of SMHI’s marine technology group, tells about an interesting company, Deepoid AB, delivering an acoustic modem to SMHI.
  • SCOOT’s coordinator contacts Anders Brodin from Deepoid, who says they are working on a new type of logging sensor for ocean currents.
  • SCOOT’s coordinator also contacts oceanography professor Göran Broström, who think this sounds interesting and writes to Anders at Deepoid.
  • A joint discussion about scope, technical solutions, ambition, time line and funding ensues. (This time without external funders.)
  • A new innovation project takes off: Deepoid shall develop, manufacture and deliver 10 current loggers to the University of Gothenburg. The technology is based on position sensing of a pendulum, with minimal weight and minimal power consumption.

Testing in real environment
and communicating results

Last week SCOOT’s coordinator, together with communicator Maria Holmkvist (Centre for Sea and Society) visited Göran and Anders at classic research station Bornö in Gullmarn. We saw Göran cracking theory, while Anders adjusted some of the loggers. Most of all we saw real environment testing and validating data collection (day and night!), new sensors deployed together with traditional acoustic sensors. Göran had brought his mini-ROV, which allowed for inspection and nice underwater photos of the deployed loggers.

Test av sensorer. Bornö. Fotograf: Maria Holmkvist
Anders Brodin. Test av sensorer. Bornö. Fotograf: Maria Holmkvist
Anders Brodin och Göran Broström på Bornö. Fotograf: Maria Holmkvist
Bornö 2021. Göran Broström, Göteborgs universitet. Fotograf: Maria Holmvksit
Bornö 2021. Göran Broström, Göteborgs universitet. Fotograf: Maria Holmvksit
Test av sensorer. Bornö. Fotograf: Maria Holmkvist
Test av sensorer. Bornö. Fotograf: Torsten Linders
Test av sensorer. Bornö. Fotograf: Torsten Linders
Bornö 2021. Göran Broström, Göteborgs universitet. Fotograf: Maria Holmvksit
Gladius camera snap
Gladius camera snap
Gladius camera snap
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SCOOT will continue to follow Deepoid AB and this project. Specifically we want to support the next steps: Communicating with more potential users and finding funding for further development, such as including measurements of temperature and light. We believe this robust and easy to deploy sensor is optimal for:

  • Coastal marine research.
  • Monitoring around planned or completed constructions, such as aquaculture.

Thoughts? Contact Deepoid and SCOOT:

I want to know more about Deeopoid and their sensors
I have an idea for a SCOOT innovation project

Ocean Changemaker: Berring Data Collective

Citizen Science, Data, Environmental monitoring, Fishing vessels, Greenland, Innovation, People, Region, Ship of opprtunity / December 21, 2021

We are extremely happy to share that Cooper Van Vranken has been selected as an ‘Ocean Changemaker‘ at the World Ocean Initiative, arranged by The Economist Group. Cooper is the founder of the Berring Data Collective. This is indeed a game-changer in ocean observing: Using fishing vessels to bring in high quality data from ocean regions where data is most desperately needed, including around Greenland. Check it out, it is already live!

Cooper was invited speaker at our online conference Ocean Data for Ocean Health in September. Afterwards he joined us for the follow up breakfast webinar on alternative platforms for ocean sensors. Cooper collaborates closely with Patrick Gorringe who works EMODnet Physics and at the Swedish Meteorological and Hydrological Institute. Together they make data collected by fishing vessels available to all users, including ocean and climate researchers, operational forecasters and environmental monitoring agencies. Cooper and co-authors have published their work in Frontier in Marine Science.

Ocean Data conference spurs collaboration!

Animal platforms, ASV, AUV, Breakfast, Citizen Science, Data, Demo, Fishing vessels, Innovation, SeaExplorer, Ship of opprtunity, SP SeaCat, Tuna / December 21, 2021

September 29th at Nya Varvet and online

What a day… The conference Ocean Data for Ocean Health covered a lot of the themes SCOOT has been involved in the last two years. We hosted the event on September 29th at SCOOT’s space at Nya Varvet in Gothenburg, and we were happy to gather quite a number of old and new SCOOT people and partners.

The programme scratched on the surface of many urgent topics. SCOOT is committed to contribute to keeping up the momentum of this dynamic environment! (Just hosted breakfast meeting on sensors platforms of opportunity, see below.)

Especially intense for SCOOT was the final Block 4, demonstrating autonomous technology for collecting ocean data, see below.

Jessica just before start of conference.
Jessica just before start of conference.
Jessica kicks off conference.
Jessica kicks off conference.
From block 1, keynote by Robin teigland.
From block 1, keynote by Robin teigland.
Christian and Fredrik leading block 2.
Christian and Fredrik leading block 2.
Keynote speaker Jannes Gimsbury, block 3.
Keynote speaker Jannes Gimsbury, block 3.
Torsten talking to Robert Mertens, block 3.
Torsten talking to Robert Mertens, block 3.
Robots for ocean science, in the electronics workshop.
Robots for ocean science, in the electronics workshop.
Olle shows and tells in the electronics workshop.
Olle shows and tells in the electronics workshop.
Olle explains how diving glider Seaexplorer works.
Olle explains how diving glider Seaexplorer works.
Preparations for demo in the marina.
Preparations for demo in the marina.
Seacat in the marina.
Seacat in the marina.
Seacat approaching Green Pilot, Robert stands by.
Seacat approaching Green Pilot, Robert stands by.
Ola explains data collection with Green Pilot.
Ola explains data collection with Green Pilot.
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Block 4: Demonstration of ocean robots

Autonomous vehicles

VOTO‘s research coordinator Louise Biddle and oceanographic technician Olle Petersson explain how gliders on and below the seasurface monitors the ocean.

Play Video
Next generation ocean observers!

Elsa and Jakob from the Science Club in Lysekil show their drifter Dynamene, built by Science Club and deployed in the morning, retrieving data live!

Play Video
Experimental platforms

Ola Benderius from Chalmers Revere lab and Robert Rylander from RISE Maritime research demontrate how knowledge from the automotive industry can be applied in the maritime domain. (Special appearance by flying drone from MMT Swden AB…)

Play Video

October 21st, breakfast webinar on tuna and fishing vessels

We were 6 persons having our morning coffee at Nya Varvet and another 6 joining the video meeting. Picking up from Sept 29th, we talked at some length about opportunities (and challenges) around data from tagged animals and from sensors mounted on fishing gear/vessels. Take home messages:

  • These data have huge potential to fill serious gaps in existing ocean monitoring programmes, where other and autonomous methods struggle. These gaps include shelf and coastal seas and marginal ice zones.
  • The cost-benefit relation is very good!
  • The infrastructure for collecting and distributing these data is rapidly expanding and maturing.
  • Challenges include subsurface communication and integration into existing monitoring data flows.

Recording from the meeting.

Research engineer from Moscow wins the Killer Shrimp Invasion Challenge!

Baltic Sea, Citizen Science, Data, Data Factory, Innovation, Invasive specieses, Workshop / December 21, 2021

In March the Killer Shrimp Invasion Challenge was opened on Kaggle by Ocean Data Factory Sweden (coordinated by SCOOT): Use innovative machine learning (ML) solutions to predict the spread of the so-called “Killer Shrimp” (Dikerogammarus Villosus) into the Baltic Sea. The challenge is now closed , the referees have completed the evaluation and announced that the winner is…

Dimitriy, research engineer at IBRAE RAS in Moscow, Russia! Dimitriy nicked the winner’s place with a score of 0.99954 (out of a maximum possible 1) and by complying to all rules. Dimitry will be presenting his model in an open webinar on June 16th, see below:

The Benefits and Challenges of Open Innovation and Citizen Science for Solving Ocean Challenges through Applying ML to Ocean Data

Join us on June 16th for a Zoom discussion (Please register here):

  • 15:30 to 15:40 Introduction to Ocean Data Factory Sweden and afternoon discussion
  • 15:40 to 16:10 The Killer Shrimp Invasion Challenge on Kaggle: An online competition tackling the spread of invasive marine species through machine learning
  • 16:10 to 16.20 Break
  • 16.20 to 16.50 The Koster Seafloor Observatory on Zooniverse (still open to join!): Using citizen science and machine learning to annotate subsea imagery
  • 16.50 to 17.00 Concluding remarks

Join the Killer Shrimp Invasion Challenge!

Baltic Sea, Citizen Science, Data, Data Factory, Innovation, Invasive specieses / December 21, 2021

Ocean Data Factory Sweden (coordinated by SCOOT) releases an open challenge: Use innovative machine learning (ML) solutions to predict the spread of the so-called “Killer Shrimp” (Dikerogammarus Villosus) into the Baltic Sea. Join the Killer Shrimp Invasion Challenge online on Kaggle!

Are you

  • a data scientist interested in applying your knowledge to environmental challenges?
  • a marine scientist interested in using Machine Learning in your work?
  • generally passionate about the ocean and keen to learn more about Machine Learning and Marine Science?

Then this is the right challenge for you! The winner of this competition will be awarded a €150 prize, along with the opportunity to present their winning model at the next ODF Sweden Grand Meeting. The event will be in the beautiful city of Gothenburg in June 2020 (date tba).

Join ODF Sweden in the The Koster seafloor observatory!

Biodiversity, Citizen Science, Data, Data Factory, Environmental monitoring, Koster Marine National Park, ROV, Video / December 21, 2021

Ocean Data Factory Sweden (coordinated by SCOOT) is now stepping into a truly demanding territory: Automated species recognition in subsea images. See the promo video and join the The Koster seafloor observatory online on Zooniverse!
 

About The Koster seafloor observatory

At the Koster seafloor observatory we want to know how climate change and human activities influence Sweden’s marine ecosystems.

For the last 20 years, we have used Remotely Operated Vehicles and cameras to monitor the Kosterhavets National Park (click images above for example videos!). A highly-diverse and unique marine reserve in the south of Sweden. Now, we need your help identifying the habitat, species, and presence of litter recorded in over 3,000 hours of underwater videos.

Your answers will allow us to filter out crucial information from the recordings and study how the fauna on the sea floor has changed in response to warmer waters, fishing activities, and changes in environmental protection.

Submerge yourself among large sponges, starfish, and cold-water corals to help us understand the health of the Koster’s sea floor and how we can better protect it.

Words from project owner Victor Valdes

The researcher

“We are excited to bring you a new way to dive into Sweden’s first marine national park. By classifying the underwater videos you will explore our unique marine biodiversity and enable us to better understand the health of Sweden’s marine ecosystems.” 

Learn more!