The newly released IOC corporate brochure highlights IOC’s leading role in the sustainable management of our oceans, in part thanks to GOOS’ coordination efforts. The brochure explains the importance and the benefits of the intergovernmental coordination, along with the role played by GOOS in that process to establish climate and weather forecasts.

The brochure details how these forecasts are carried out with the assistance of programmes such as Argo, an observing system consisting of about 3,800 floats which collect and transmit ocean data for forecasts and monitor the effectiveness of efforts to mitigate climate change. Dr Wijffels, Co-Chair of the Argo science team explains via the brochure that the speed with which the system was put into place, as well as its usefulness and effectives is commendable, especially considering the complex challenges of international participation, national security matters, political sensitivities and Exclusive Economic Zones. This is why, Dr. Wijffels believes that GOOS’ work is “one of the best examples of international collaboration”.

Additionally, Dr. Legler, co-chair of the Observations Programme Area of the Joint Technical Commission for Oceanography and Marine Meteorology (JCOMM) also contributed to the brochure to highlight the importance of the IOC working with partners like the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) on coordination mechanisms such as JCOMM. He also acknowledges the critical role of GOOS, claiming “Without GOOS. . . it would be very difficult for national scientists to really understand the changes taking place in the global ocean environment.”