Seminar on Business Consequences of Sea Changes
Longer-term gradual climate change represents an even greater business risk. How much will future supply chains, business operations and markets be impacted by changes in temperature, rainfall distribution, storm intensity and rising sea levels? With these questions in mind, a workshop 'Small Sea Changes, Big Business Decisions' is being held on 31 October 2007 to explore how enhanced understanding of the oceans improves weather and climate prediction, enabling better informed business decisions.
This workshop will address how a better understanding of the oceans can lead to better business decisions and thus have very tangible benefits. The organisers expect key players in a wide range of business sectors including energy, utilities, agriculture, transport, insurance, construction, retail, manufacturing, tourism, leisure, regulatory agencies and the financial sector to attend to learn about and debate the benefits to their particular business area.
Over the past few decades the construction of the nationally and internationally funded Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS) has made a major contribution to improved weather forecasts, better seasonal predictions and reduced uncertainty about future climate. Further improvements will be realised when this emerging system is fully implemented and sustained. Yet, long-term funding for completing and maintaining this critical infrastructure is not secure.
The workshop will open with presentations in a plenary session. These will provide an introduction to the Global Ocean Observing System, explain how the oceans influence weather and climate; and describe the impact on industry of better understanding of weather and climate. The plenary will be followed by a number of breakout sessions during which the business benefits will be debated. An evening networking reception will be held to close the day.
The one-day workshop is being organised by the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST); the Marine Information Alliance (MIA) and the Interagency Committee for Marine Science and Technology (IACMST). Sponsors include Shell, the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the National Centre for Ocean Forecasting (NCOF) and the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) - Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO (IOC of UNESCO) Joint Commission on Oceanography and Marine Meteorology (JCOMM).
