We are excited to welcome you back to our new semester of our Ocean Seminar series!
In this first installment of the fall semester 2025/26 our TwinPolitics Ocean Seminar Series on Wednesday, 29th October 2025, from 17:00 to 18:30 (CET) our guest speaker, Madhulika Bhati, will talk about the topic Charting Innovation: Patent Landscape of Digital Twin Technologies in Blue Economy Sectors
About the speaker
Madhulika Bhati is a Visiting Professor at Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, and a Principal Scientist at the National Institute of Science Communication and Policy Research (NIScPR), under the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), India.
At Dalhousie, she collaborates with faculty on research in big data analytics, bibliometrics/scientometrics, and advanced statistical modeling. Her work identifies emerging trends in academic research and industrial technologies, developing models and frameworks that support evidence-based decision-making aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Her research under the Transforming Climate Action program focuses on ocean-related climate change mitigation and adaptation, contributing especially to SDG 13 (Climate Action) and SDG 14 (Life Below Water). She is also deeply engaged in studying the integration of digital twin technologies in blue economy sectors, including marine energy, shipbuilding, port operations, fisheries and aquaculture. Her work highlights how digital twins support sustainable innovation, performance monitoring, and emergency planning, particularly in response to natural disasters and coastal risks.
She is the main collaborator of a newly approved SSHRC-funded project titled “Exploring the use of Digital Twins to mitigate environmental risks of offshore wind farms through stakeholder consultations in Nova Scotia,” reflecting her interdisciplinary and stakeholder-oriented research approach.
Madhulika has published several peer-reviewed articles in reputed international journals and has provided consultancy to UN organizations including the UN-SCBD and the International Labour Organization (ILO). She has also led and coordinated multiple activities in collaboration with UN-ESCAP and UNDP, further contributing to global policy and sustainability dialogues through science-based insights.
Introduction to the Topic
The blue economy encompasses a range of sectors, including marine energy, shipbuilding and sea operations, fisheries and aquaculture, as well as emerging areas such as deep-sea mining, coastal protection, pollution control, and ocean acidification. It offers both measurable and non-measurable benefits to society, extending to essential ecosystem services. However, several BE sectors face significant challenges in achieving sustainable development.
Digital Twins (DTs) possess considerable potential to tackle several challenges across various BE sectors. By integrating data-driven insights, artificial intelligence (AI), and the Internet of Things (IoT), DTs have significant potential to drive innovation and economic growth in the BE while minimizing environmental impacts and improving community resilience, thus supporting sustainable development. A comprehensive understanding of the DT concept is vital for developing innovative solutions that enhance sustainability in the BE. With the integration of DT innovations into the BE sector, it is important to understand the innovation landscape in this area. Whereas analyses of academic publications provide insights into recent research trends, blue-sky research does not always promise innovation and real-world uptake. Patents are an indicator of the maturity of a concept and show a higher degree of technological readiness level. We will discuss the patent landscape of the Digital Twin in blue economy sectors to identify the types of innovation occurring across these sectors.
Suggested Reading Materials
- Madhulika Bhati, Floris Goerlandt, Ronald Pelot (2025): Digital twin development towards integration into blue economy: A bibliometric analysis, Ocean Engineering, Volume 317, 119781, ISSN 0029-8018, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.oceaneng.2024.119781.
Join Us!
📌 Register here: https://mailchi.mp/ed2568d2b8dd/ocean-seminar-lecture-series
📌 More information: https://twinpolitics.eu/
Join this meeting here: https://zoom.us/j/95479873069?pwd=ztYDWEdIZh4Du9n5JyUGtu8R3qipRP.1
Project Leader: Prof. Dr. Alice Vadrot – TwinPolitics Principal investigator, University of Vienna – alice.vadrot@univie.ac.at
Seminar Organiser – The TwinPolitics Team, University of Vienna – twinpolitics.erc.powi@univie.ac.at
This project has received funding from the European Research Council (ERC) under the European Union’s Horizon Europe research and innovation programme (grant agreement No 101124903 – TwinPolitics – ERC-2024-STG). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Research Council. Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them.
