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The UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (Ocean Decade) challenges marine science to better inform and stimulate social and economic development while conserving marine ecosystems. To achieve these objectives, we must make our diverse methodologies more comparable and interoperable, expanding global participation and foster capacity development in ocean science through a new and coherent approach to best practice development. We present perspectives on this issue gleaned from the ongoing development of the UNESCO Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) Ocean Best Practices System (OBPS). The OBPS is collaborating with individuals and programs around the world to transform the way ocean methodologies are managed, in strong alignment with the outcomes envisioned for the Ocean Decade. However, significant challenges remain, including: (1) the haphazard management of methodologies across their lifecycle, (2) the ambiguous endorsement of what is “best” and when and where one method may be applicable vs. another, and (3) the inconsistent access to methodological knowledge across disciplines and cultures. To help address these challenges, we recommend that sponsors and leaders in ocean science and education promote consistent documentation and convergence of methodologies to: create and improve context-dependent best practices; incorporate contextualized best practices into Ocean Decade Actions; clarify who endorses which method and why; create a global network of complementary ocean practices systems; and ensure broader consistency and flexibility in international capacity development.
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Relating Best Practices to Standardization in Ocean Science
Over the past decade, the Ocean Best Practices System, hosted and maintained by the International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange of UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, has grown to become a trusted and stable repository for all types of ocean Best Practices documentation. Given the nature of the information it contains, the repository embodies a unique resource base for supporting initiatives aimed at strengthening standardization in Ocean Science. Based on this consideration, the Ocean Best Practices System is forming a new task team to explore and evaluate the potential role that the comprehensive Best Practice information it secures could play in identifying and prioritizing processes for furthering this objective. Particular care is being taken to keep the work open and transparent through constant community engagement and by linking with international bodies/organizations dealing with measurement.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1728913
- PAR ID:
- 10626413
- Editor(s):
- NA
- Publisher / Repository:
- IEEE
- Date Published:
- Edition / Version:
- NA
- Volume:
- NA
- Issue:
- NA
- ISSN:
- NA
- ISBN:
- 979-8-3503-3226-1
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 1 to 4
- Subject(s) / Keyword(s):
- Ocean Best Practices, OBPS
- Format(s):
- Medium: X Size: NA Other: NA
- Size(s):
- NA
- Location:
- Limerick, Ireland
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Conference Paper:
- https://doi.org/10.1109/OCEANSLimerick52467.2023.10244310
