Ocean sustainability in the context of global change: Lessons learned from a large-scale ocean research project

The UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) has catalyzed a renewed focus on the importance of transformative science in support of sustainable solutions to pressing climate and biodiversity challenges. How that transformative science can be best fostered requires further clarity, along with examples of insights from basic research and its application for transformative change. This synthesis paper outlines the key empirical contributions and the procedural, organizational and technical lessons learned from a 10-year, large-scale global ocean research project aimed at fostering integrated marine research and the development of ocean sustainability options within and across the natural and social sciences. The specific objective the Integrated Marine Biosphere Research (IMBeR) project is to understand, quantify and compare historic and present structure and functioning of linked ocean and human systems. Outcomes of this global research effort include: 1) better understanding and quantification of the state and variability of marine ecosystems; 2) improved scenarios, predictions and projections of future ocean-human systems at multiple scales; and 3) enhanced understanding of enabling conditions for sustainable ocean governance in the context of rapid change. Outcomes of this synthesise can inform other basic natural and interdisciplinary large-scale ocean research efforts, and further contribute to ongoing global efforts to foster transformative science that links people and oceans.