CONECTARSE
Ocean Governance & Sustainable Coastal Growth and Resilience Course (Co-Growth 2nd Edition)
Ocean Governance & Sustainable Coastal Growth and Resilience Course (Co-Growth 2nd Edition)
05 - 18
Resumen
This comprehensive course provides an in-depth exploration of coastal resilience concepts that are key in supporting sustainable business practices and protecting communities against natural hazards and climate change-related impacts. Through immersive and hands on onsite activities, participants will learn and implement the principles, technologies, and strategies needed to understand, assess, and bolster resilience within coastal regions, while emphasizing business responsibility and proactive risk management tailored to Asia-Pacific context.
Building on the success of previous editions, this two-week program will run from 5 to 18 September, with sessions held successively across three Chinese coastal cities: Sanya, Hangzhou and Qingdao. Jointly guided by the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) of China, the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO and the International Ocean Institute (IOI), the training is co-organized by National Marine Data and Information Service (NMDIS), the Second Institute of Oceanography (SIO), MR and the Hainan Provincial Oceanic Administration. It serves as a key regional capacity-building activity targeting marine administrators and technical specialists from developing nations across the Western Pacific. The course is also supported by the Decade Collaborative Centre for Coastal Resilience and its Partner Alliance Network, with contributions to the in-person training from Hereon and the University of Bologna.
The baseline Co-Growth learning framework was conceptualized by the Decade Collaborative Centre for Coastal Resilience (DCC-CR), with the support of the IOC’s Decade Capacity Development Facility (CDF) and OceanTeacher Global Academy (OTGA).
Place and venue
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Sanya: Yazhou Bay Science and Technology City Innovation Research Valley
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Hangzhou: Second Institute of Oceanography
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Qingdao: Ocean University of China (West Coast Campus), Wanda Vista Hotel Qingdao Oriental Movie Metropolis.
Needs and priority analysis
This training contributes to IOC action on enhancing the capacity of its Member States to access technology, physical infrastructure, data and information through promoting human resources development at individual and institutional levels (output 1 and 2 of IOC Capacity Development Strategy, 2023-2030); and to the UN Ocean Decade by addressing capacity development needs of partners involved in current and future Ocean Decade Actions.
It also contributes to the implementation of IOC Medium-term Strategy (2022-2029) and IOC WESTPAC Call to action SGOs Tokyo Statement, by facilitating initiatives to improve Resilience to climate change and contribution to its mitigation.
Learning outcomes
After completing this course, participants will be able to:
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Explain the fundamentals and applications of blue carbon ecosystems, including basic and advanced theory, carbon sequestration mechanisms, and practical case studies drawn from Chinese coastal management experience.
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Apply remote sensing and machine learning techniques to oceanographic problems, including coastal water monitoring, high-resolution 3D ocean field reconstruction, neural network fundamentals, and AI-driven analysis of extreme sea-level events.
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Evaluate the impacts of climate change on coastal and marine systems, including sea level rise, statistical modelling of extreme events, storm surge dynamics, and associated adaptation strategies.
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Assess frameworks for sustainable ocean governance and environmental protection, covering ocean economy and governance principles, management of areas beyond national jurisdiction, coral reef monitoring, and hands-on observation through field site visits and emerging sensor technologies.
Course content
See the final version of the programme HERE.
Target audience and prerequisites
This course is designed for early-career scientists and professionals as part of their professional development and continuing education. It is especially intended for early-career scientists, young professionals working in coastal consulting firms, coastal managers and operators, and staff from environmental protection and civil protection agencies. Priority will be given to researchers and technical staff (such as managers and operators) from national and international institutions involved in ocean science, marine services, and ocean management in the Asia-Pacific region.
Language of instruction: English
Instructors
Course Coordinators
Contributing to the lectures:
Peng Zhao
Ballin Cong
Marco Marani
Lingling Li
Junxiao Zhang
Yuan Bing
Weili Wang
Bing Yuan
Xianqiang He
Wei Chen
Other contributors:
Course format
This is a face-to-face training with live sessions will run daily from 9:00-17:00 approximately. The total course duration is approximately 112 hours.
Learner assessment
This course contains one final report as core assessment. Other non-graded assessments may be included in the hands-on activities.
Evaluation/Certificate
A certificate will be awarded to the participants upon successful completion of:
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All sessions face-to-face;
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Final report (passmark: 70%);
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Completion of a pre and post-test; and
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Completion of a feedback survey.
Technology requirements/computer skills
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Basic computer skills and experience in working in a digital learning environment.
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Notions on QGIS and Python programming (Jupyter notebooks environment).
Application process
Managed externally by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China.
Number of participants
Approximately 35.
Costs
This course is offered with no tuition fees.
Participants were granted support for lodging, transportation, and subsistence during the course from the organizers.
Contacts
For additional questions, please contact OTGA Secretariat (ioc.training@unesco.org) always using the name of the course as e-mail subject.
Cancellation policy
In the event of cancellation of the course by the OTGA or its affiliates, we will provide notification of cancellation at least 7 days prior to the course date. In the event of cancellation by the attendee, we should receive notification of cancellation at least 7 days prior to the course date.
Ubicación:
Event Times (UTC-5):
Starts: 04 Sep 2026 17:00:00Ends: 17 Sep 2026 17:00:00