OBAMA-NEXT coordinator opens Danish Marine Science Meeting 2026
The 23rd Danish Marine Science Meeting (20–22 January 2026) welcomed nearly 500 attendees from academia, government agencies, and industry. The conference opened with a keynote from Professor Jacob Carstensen (Aarhus University), coordinator of the OBAMA-NEXT project.
His presentation, titled “The Future of Marine Monitoring – Promises and Pitfalls”, outlined the transformative potential of emerging technologies for marine biodiversity monitoring—drawing extensively on OBAMA-NEXT insights. Professor Carstensen discussed the promise of advanced methods such as environmental DNA (eDNA), remote sensing, and automated platforms, while also addressing ongoing challenges in integrating these tools into standardised monitoring frameworks.
The keynote set the stage for high-level discussion on how marine science can better support evidence-based policy and ecosystem management. It underscored OBAMA-NEXT’s commitment to advancing next-generation marine monitoring in support of European environmental directives.
