ARDITI

Who we are?

The Regional Agency for the Development of Research Technology and Innovation – ARDITI, is a non-profit organization, which supports research and innovation, promotes scientific and technological training and contributes to the modernization and development of the Madeira Autonomous Region (RAM). ARDITI’s activities are in tune with the economic and social development plan of the Madeira Autonomic Region (RAM), promoting sustainable economic growth and fostering qualified employment in the region. Having coordinated the Region strategic specialization program, ARDITI contributed to establish the strategy for the development and promotion of Marine Resources and Technologies – materialized in the shape of the Oceanic Observatory of Madeira / Observatório Oceânico da Madeira (OOM).

Founded as a research unit within ARDITI, the Oceanic Observatory of Madeira gathers the participation of several entities and institutions with research activities in Marine and Environmental sciences and congregates over 30 marine scientists and researchers from the different fields of expertise (e.g. oceanography, marine mammal ecology, biological invasions). The vision behind the Oceanic Observatory of Madeira is to aggregate expertise and provide the scientific foundation to promote a multidisciplinary holistic research approach focused on the ocean realm, namely:

• The study and analysis of biogeochemical, oceanographic and meteorological datasets coupled with predictive numerical models;
• Characterization of marine communities, of biodiversity patterns and associated ecological mechanisms and stressors (e.g. marine biological invasions, climate change and human-related pressures);
• Research and development with remote sensing tools and applications (e.g. marine mammal distribution and behavior, optical derived bathymetry and coastal habitat classification, automated and semi-automated object detection);

In the CleanAtlantic project, ARDITI will be participating in multiple work packages and tasks: researchers and technicians from the Oceanography team of OOM will be mostly involved in tasks of WP6 – Mapping and Modelling Marine Litter; while researchers and technicians from the Marine and Environmental Sciences Centre (MARE), a national R&D Unit participant of OOM and with a team in Madeira, will be mostly involved in tasks from WP4 – Marine Litter in the Atlantic Area and WP5 – Monitoring and Data Management.