IMBER is an IGBP-SCOR sponsored international project focussing on ocean biogeochemical cycles

Biogeochemistry

Biogeochemistry is the scientific discipline that involves the study of the chemical, physical, geological, and biological processes and reactions that govern the composition of the natural environment...

 and ecosystems.
The goal of IMBER is to investigate the sensitivity of marine biogeochemical cycle

Biogeochemical cycle

In ecology and Earth science, a biogeochemical cycle or substance turnover or cycling of substances is a pathway by which a chemical element or molecule moves through both biotic and abiotic compartments of Earth. A cycle is a series of change which comes back to the starting point and which can...

s and ecosystems to global change

Global change

Global change refers to planetary-scale changes in the Earth system. The system consists of the land, oceans, atmosphere, poles, life, the planet’s natural cycles and deep Earth processes. These constituent parts influence one another...

, on time scales ranging from years to decades.

There are currently twenty four nations involved in IMBER scientific research.

Overview

IMBER research seeks to identify the mechanisms by which marine life

Marine biology

Marine biology is the scientific study of organisms in the ocean or other marine or brackish bodies of water. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather...

 influences marine biogeochemical cycles, and how these, in turn, influence marine ecosystem

Marine ecosystem

Marine ecosystems are among the largest of Earth's aquatic ecosystems. They include oceans, salt marsh and intertidal ecology, estuaries and lagoons, mangroves and coral reefs, the deep sea and the sea floor. They can be contrasted with freshwater ecosystems, which have a lower salt content. Marine...

s.
Central to the IMBER goal is the development of a predictive understanding of how marine biogeochemical cycles and ecosystems respond to complex forcings, such as large-scale climatic variations, changing physical dynamics, carbon cycle

Carbon cycle

The carbon cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth...

 chemistry and nutrient fluxes, and the impacts of marine harvesting. Changes in marine biogeochemical cycles and ecosystems due to global change will also have consequences for the broader Earth System. An even greater challenge will be drawing together the natural and social science communities to study some of the key impacts and feedbacks between the marine and human systems.

IMBER Themes

To address the IMBER goal four overarching scientific themes have been identified:

Theme 1. Interactions between Biogeochemical Cycles and Marine Food Webs

Theme 2. Sensitivity to Global Change: How will key marine biogeochemical cycles, ecosystems and their interactions, respond to global change?

Theme 3. Feedback to the Earth System: What are the roles of ocean biogeochemistry and ecosystems in regulating climate?

Theme 4. Responses of Society: What are the relationships between marine biogeochemical cycles, ecosystems, and the human system?

Publications

Science Plan and Implementation Strategy (IMBER SPIS

IMBER Newsletters: Newsletters

IMBER e-bulletins: Electronic bulletin

IMBER International Project Office (IPO)

The IMBER IPO coordinates and organises international activities of the project, provides a structure for data management

Data management

Data management comprises all the disciplines related to managing data as a valuable resource.- Overview :The official definition provided by DAMA International, the professional organization for those in the data management profession, is: "Data Resource Management is the development and execution...

 for IMBER projects, ensures financial management of the project, and promotes IMBER in the wider scientific community

Scientific community

The scientific community consists of the total body of scientists, its relationships and interactions. It is normally divided into "sub-communities" each working on a particular field within science. Objectivity is expected to be achieved by the scientific method...

.
To have further information about IMBER project, contact the IMBER IPO at imber@univ-brest.fr.