XXIII Congress of the Italian Association of Oceannography and Limnology (AIOL) - Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy (26-29 September 2017) - Functioning, alteration and restoration of aquatic ecosystems

The aquatic sciences to understand the changes and to make the public aware - The growth of the human population and the consequent increased human impact on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems are now social problems perceived globally and not just of exclusive interest to the scientific community. In fact, the intensive use of the hydrosphere, the exploitation of non-renewable and renewable resources, the globalization of markets and of maritime transport are altogether changing the structure and functioning of aquatic ecosystems and their capacity to produce goods and services for humans. For these reasons, it is necessary that the scientific community makes aware the citizens about the outcomes of research on these issues and inform the entire community of the need to intensify the study of the mechanisms that underlie the changes that are taking place in aquatic ecosystems. 

During the XXIII Congress of AIOL we will discuss the results of the latest research on the structure and functioning of aquatic ecosystems and the importance of restoring biodiversity and ecosystem functions when impaired or compromised as a result of one or more disturbances. This effort aims to provide new insights to implement conservation practices of ecosystems, develop virtuous and sustainable mechanisms of adaptation for the exploitation of resources, and plan active restoration actions. 

The XXIII Congress of AIOL will be held from 26 to 29 September 2017 at the Department of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Cagliari (Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy). The congress, reserved to AIOL members, will also see the participation of excellent foreign researchers in the different fields of scientific research on freshwater and marine environments. The major national experts in the field of aquatic sciences will be called to give their contribution in an attempt to trace the foundations of a "roadmap" for the adaptive management and proactive changes that aquatic ecosystems shall face in the near future. 

To promote the transfer of scientific knowledge to representatives of the society, local, regional and national policy makers will be invited to follow the work of the congress. One of the conference space will be open to the public (especially schoolchildren), which can interact with the scientists, to promote and disseminate, in a simple and accessible to non-experts way, issues related to the preservation, protection and management of aquatic ecosystems. 

The AIOL conference is a unique opportunity for debating and discussing issues affecting the marine and limnological sciences. The Congress has a strong interdisciplinary connotation and is intended to encourage research, collaboration and information exchange between scientists of different disciplines related to Limnology and Oceanography, in order to contribute to the advancement of these sciences and the transfer of scientific information to the society. 

The scientific topics are free and, as usual, renowned international speakers will be invited to address their view on current issues in the field of aquatic sciences. To ensure the greatest possible interchange, talks will be given only during the plenary session, which will allow the various disciplinary souls to meet and converge towards a common language.

Website (in Italian): http://www.aiol.info/prossimo-congresso-aiol/For further information: apusceddu@unica.it