Making the Digital Twin of the Ocean fit for Global Marine Governance: Ethics, Politics, and Transformative Power?
12 June at 6 p.m. in the Auditorium at the Institut de la Mer in Villefranche followed by a reception
The Digital Twin of the Ocean is high on the EU’s political agenda and envisioned to become one of the most advanced support tools for “better decision-making” in ocean governance. Even though digital twins have enormous potential to change how we understand and govern the ocean, they face a complicated reality including global imbalances, geopolitical struggles and scientific and data-related uncertainties. These developments are particularly pronounced in the context of ongoing multilateral environmental negotiations such as on the Agreement on the conservation and sustainable use of marine Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD), a Global Plastics Treaty and deep-seabed mining (ISA).
The high-level panel connecting experts from research, policy makers and diplomats to discuss will explore how we can ensure that the EU DTO is not just technologically and scientifically robust but also equitable in the context of international marine policy and agreement making.
Chairs
Alice Vadrot, Professor for Environmental Politics and International Relations at the University of Vienna, Principal Researcher of the ERC Project “TwinPolitics”.
Nicolas Pade, Executive Director of the European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC)
Panelists
Pascal Lamy, Vice-President of Paris Peace Forum, Coordinator of the Jacques Delors Think Tanks (Paris, Berlin, Brussels), Former DG of WTO, Former Trade Commissioner (European Commission), Co-Chair of the Blue Economic and Finance Forum in Monaco
Andrei Polejack, Director of Research and Innovation, National Institute for Ocean Research – INPO, Brazil
Angelique Pouponneau, Ocean Lead Negotiator of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS)
Vanessa Yepes-Narváez, Scientific Researcher, Marine and Coastal Research Institute “José Benito Vives de Andréis” (INVEMAR), Colombia
Nicolas Pade, Executive Director of the European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC)
Moderation
Alice Vadrot, Professor for Environmental Politics and International Relations at the University of Vienna, Principal Researcher of the ERC Project “TwinPolitics”.
A cooperation between the ERC Project TwinPolitics at the University of Vienna and the European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC) (www.embrc.eu) under the EU funded MARCO-BOLO project (www.marcobolo-project.eu).
Location and time
The panel will take place on 12 June at 6 p.m. in the Auditorium at the Institut de la Mer in Villefranche and will be followed by a reception with drinks and finger food for an informal exchange.
Registration for the event is necessary, as there is security check at the entrance – a shuttle is offered from the Port of Nice (Blue Zone) and can be reserved during the registration process.
Registration: https://mailchi.mp/14eac086c64f/making-the-digital-twin-of-the-ocean-fit-for-global-marine-governance
For further questions please contact: twinpolitics.erc.powi@univie.ac.at
Biographies of our panlists
Pascal Lamy is the Vice-President of the Paris Peace Forum and of the European branch of the Brunswick Group. He coordinates the Jacques Delors Institutes (Paris, Berlin, Brussels). He is Vice Chair Blue Economy and Finance Forum (UNOC3 2025). He is also President or member of various boards with a global, european or french vocation (European Starfish Mission (ocean), Mo Ibrahim Foundation, European Climate Foundation, IFPRI, IFPIM, PECC, CERRE, TMEA, Antarctica 2020, Transparency International, Alpbach Forum, Beijing Forum, World Trade Forum, WEF, Global Risks, Europaeum, Collegium international, Musiciens du Louvre, Institut Mendes-France, Colbert Foundation, etc.). He is an affiliated professor at the China Europe International Business School CEIBS (Shanghai) and at HEC (Paris).
From 2005 to 2013, Pascal Lamy served two consecutive terms as Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO). He was previously Trade Commissioner (1999-2004), Director General of Crédit Lyonnais (1994-1999), Chief of Staff of the President of the European Commission, Jacques Delors and his G7 Sherpa (1985-1994), Deputy Chief of Staff of the French Prime Minister (1983-1985) and to the French Minister of the Economy and Finance (1981-1983).
Andrei Polejack is the Director for Research and Innovation of the recently inaugurated National Institute of Ocean Research in Brazil and has worked with the interface of ocean science and policy and diplomacy for over 20 years, serving at the Brazilian Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation and representing in many international processes.
Vanessa Yepes-Narváez Ph.D. is a scientific researcher at INVEMAR with strong academic background in marine environmental ecology. She leads the marine eDNA monitoring initiative in Colombia which include several partners in Latin-American and the Caribbean region and aims to the creation of best practices guides for quality and data management. She has carried out several research projects in offshore areas of the Colombian Caribbean and Pacific that have contributed to decision-making in environmental aspects such as the creation of new laws and Marine Protected Areas.
Angelique Pouponneau is a lawyer from the Seychelles and holds an LLM in Environmental Law specialising in the law of the sea and natural resources law. She is currently, the Lead Ocean Negotiator for the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS). She previously served as the Chief of Staff to the United Nations Assistant Secretary-General for Climate Action and Just Transitions and the Chief Executive Officer of the Seychelles’ Conservation and Climate Adaptation Trust. In 2021, The New African Magazine recognised her as the 100 most influential Africans. Angelique has worked in different countries in the Caribbean, Pacific and the Indian Ocean on a wide range of projects relating to sustainable fisheries, and sustainable management of marine biodiversity within and beyond national jurisdiction. She serves on the advisory board of the UN Ocean Decade.
Nicolas Pade is the Executive Director of the European Marine Biological Resource Centre (EMBRC-ERIC), He holds a PhD in molecular and spatial ecology from the University of Aberdeen (2009) with a focus on marine predators. Nicolas became the executive officer for the French national research infrastructure EMBRC-France, before taking over as the executive director of EMBRC-ERIC in 2019. Nicolas has a particular interest in the broad application of genomics tools to observe and understand marine biodiveristy.
Alice Vadrot has been Professor for International Relations and Environment at the Department of Political Science since March 2025. Her focus is on researching the interface between science and politics in international environmental diplomacy and developing new methodological approaches to examining the role of knowledge in international negotiations. In 2018, the political scientist received an ERC Starting Grant for her project MARIPOLDATA (2018-2024), in which she and her research group are mapping negotiations on a new agreement to protect the high seas and the development of the scientific field of marine biodiversity. As part of the EU project MARCO-BOLO (2022-2026), she is investigating the need for data in biodiversity policy and nature conservation practice.
