Ocean Program

Created in 2015, the Oceano Program is a permanent support program for the FCT Board of Directors and for monitoring Marine Sciences and Technologies (MSC). Its mission is to maximize dialogue with the various scientific communities that make up this transdisciplinary area, in order to inform the decision-making of the Board of Directors with regard to research and innovation in the field of STM, coordinate national STM activities, and Portuguese participation in European and international organizations.

The maritime sector has been a national challenge since 2006, when the first National Strategy for the Sea (ENM) was launched. The National Strategies for the Sea (2006-2012; 2013-2020; current 2021-2030) have enabled Portugal to respond to the challenges posed by the promotion, growth and competitiveness of the maritime economy, in the face of major political and strategic changes at European and global level. Portugal's effective return to the sea thus depends on the implementation of a strategy based on knowledge and technological progress and on the size and geography of the national territory, both submerged and immersed, including the new extended dimension resulting from the submission for the extension of the continental shelf beyond 200 nautical miles.

The high standard set by the maritime sector and marine sciences and technologies establishes goals that challenge existing technological capacities and exceptionally foster transdisciplinarity and internationalization among all the entities involved. This sector is characterized by the activity of a number of laboratories, scientific research centers and high-tech companies, in which interaction between different academic communities and between these and industry is a fundamental pillar.

Functions

Advising and counseling the FCT's Board of Directors on maritime matters, in particular its scientific and technological component;
Analyze and explore the benefits that national participation in European and international maritime affairs programs and institutions/organizations has for FCT in particular, and for Portuguese society and economy in general, supporting and boosting the action of the National Delegates;
Establishing synergies with national entities with activities and/or competencies in maritime matters, promoting the valorization of the results of FCT-funded research in STM, in line with the science and knowledge component of the National Strategy for the Sea and in accordance with the National and regional Intelligent Specialization Strategies where the maritime domain has been identified as a priority;
Representing the FCT in national, European or international initiatives in the field of SCT;
Produce analyses of the evolution of the MTC in Portugal, and in its relationship with the European and international context.