Marine systems and their biodiversity provide us with a range of valuable ecosystem services, including food supply, storage of heat and CO2, production of oxygen, as well as recreation and tourism. 

Marine biodiversity includes the wealth of life in seas and the ocean, from marine mammals and fish to algae and microscopic organisms. This diversity of life is crucial for the functioning of marine ecosystems and biogeochemical cycles of carbon, nitrogen and oxygen, among others. However, the marine environment is changing rapidly by climate change, overexploitation, habitat destruction and invasive species. We need to understand the impact of these changes on the marine ecosystems. 

In LifeWatch, we have an innovative marine observatory that studies multiple components of the marine ecosystem to understand the impact of a changing environment, human interactions and migration patterns in order to support the sustainable management of the marine ecosystem. Additionally, we host and maintain marine biodiversity databases of global importance that are used by a wide variety of stakeholders. Citizen scientists collect thousands of shells on a yearly basis.