EMSEA annual conference - Oostend, Belgium

🌊✨Come to Ostend for the #EMSEA2025 Annual Conference!

📍 The conference kicks off on Wednesday, September 17th at De Grote Post.

It’s time to start introducing the inspiring #keynotespeakers who will guide us as beacons of #OceanLiteracy in Europe.

🔹 Meet Sigi Gruber - With over 30 years of service at the European Commission, Sigi has shaped international Research & Innovation cooperation across the globe – from the Americas to India, from the Arctic to Antarctica. Her leadership was pivotal in driving science and innovation strategies to restore, heal, and protect our #ocean, through major initiatives such as:
🌍 The European Ocean & Waters Mission (from the Baltic to the Mediterranean & the Black Sea)
🌊 The All-Atlantic Ocean Research Alliance

Today, as an Active Senior Adviser, she continues to share her vast expertise, engaging with young people and global communities to highlight why a healthy ocean is vital — to eat, to work, to trade, to enjoy… and to survive. Sigi is not only a passionate #oceanadvocate but also a true global citizen: bilingual (Italian & German), fluent in English, and conversant in French & Spanish — always eager to connect with people from all around the world. 🌎💙 We’re honored to have her with us in Ostend, inspiring the EMSEA community with her vision and dedication.

This year’s conference is co-organized by VLIZ, EMODnet, EuroGOOS, and proudly endorsed by the UN Ocean Decade.