DTO-BioFlow Matchmaking Event 2 - Demonstrator Use Case 1 on Genetic Monitoring Program for Non-Indigenous Species (NIS)
On 22 October 2025, DTO-BioFlow organised its second matchmaking event for Demonstrator Use Case 1 (DUC1), focused on genetic monitoring approaches for Non-Indigenous Species (NIS). The meeting took place at the Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management (SwAM) in Gothenburg, Sweden.
The event brought together representatives from Swedish agencies, research institutions, and marine monitoring organisations to discuss the role of biodiversity and genetic data within the European Digital Twin Ocean (DTO) and related marine policy frameworks.
The meeting served both as a follow-up to the OSPAR/HELCOM meeting (MME1) discussions and as a progress meeting on the development of DUC1. Participants reviewed the status of ARMS MBON activities and the Swedish port monitoring programme for NIS.
Discussions focused on:
- Data flows for genetic data and species observations
- Reporting and utilisation of NIS observations
- Predictive modelling and decision-making applications
- Contributions to the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) and Ballast Water Management Convention (BWMC)
- Integration of monitoring outputs into DTO tools and infrastructure
The event resulted in several important outcomes:
- Specifications were developed for reporting genetic monitoring data and analytical results
- Participants outlined a new three-year genetic monitoring programme designed to feed data into the DTO ecosystem
- Initial specifications for a Ballast Water Management “contingency tool” were identified
- A Letter of Commitment was received to support continued collaboration
- A conference abstract highlighting the collaboration was submitted
- A follow-up meeting was scheduled for February 2026
Following the discussions, SwAM launched a public procurement for an extended genetic monitoring programme for 2026–2028, further supporting long-term monitoring and biodiversity data integration efforts.
Attendees
- Anna Hasslow – Swedish Agency for Marine and Water Management (SwAM)
- Erland Lettevall – Swedish Transport Agency
- Anna Dimming – County Administrative Board Västra Götaland (CAB VG)
- Matthias Obst – University of Gothenburg (UGOT)
- Malin Strand & Rahmat Naddafi – Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences
- Björn Kallström – Swedish Maritime Museum