xv
Born of the sea, Marseille has, at all times, looked upon it. The range of
activities it generates have, over the centuries, shaped its image and contributed to its attractiveness and its infl uence. The tourist enthusiasm it generates
today attests.
Although important, this advantage is not the only one. With the presence
of university structures and research centers dedicated to marine science and
technology in the Mediterranean, Marseille is in an important scientifi c landscape. Held for the third time since 1985, a new edition of the Franco-Japanese
Symposium of Oceanography in Marseille, in conjunction with the Third
International Congress on Marine Protected Areas, confi rms the interest that
the scientifi c community attaches to the role played by our city in this fi eld.
But Marseille also puts into practice the lessons arising from many scientifi c
exchanges it accepts and which it participates. The sea is an integral part of
our living, our quality of life, and the Marseille coast is a fragile area where
the issues and challenges related to its preservation and its valuation should
be focused.
This is to meet the needs of the present without compromising, for future
generations, the possibility to meet their own needs. It is in this perspective
that the City of Marseille has made signifi cant projects: e.g., creating the
Calanques National Park, the largest European land and sea peri National
Park; Frioul Islands Marine Park; Operation Prado Reefs; and Management
Plan of the Rade.
Major international scientifi c events devoted to the marine world are therefore, in Marseille, their measurement environment. They had their place in
the range of cultural events marked Marseille-Provence 2013, European
Capital of Culture. During the 15th Symposium on Franco-Japanese
Oceanography, it has also become part of the twinning of Marseille with the
port city of Kobe, with which our city is linked for more than half a century.
Mayor of Marseille, Senator of Bouches-du-Rhône
Jean-Claude Gaudin
Foreword
Born of the sea, Marseille has, at all times, looked upon it. The range of
activities it generates have, over the centuries, shaped its image and contributed to its attractiveness and its infl uence. The tourist enthusiasm it generates
today attests.
Although important, this advantage is not the only one. With the presence
of university structures and research centers dedicated to marine science and
technology in the Mediterranean, Marseille is in an important scientifi c landscape. Held for the third time since 1985, a new edition of the Franco-Japanese
Symposium of Oceanography in Marseille, in conjunction with the Third
International Congress on Marine Protected Areas, confi rms the interest that
the scientifi c community attaches to the role played by our city in this fi eld.
But Marseille also puts into practice the lessons arising from many scientifi c
exchanges it accepts and which it participates. The sea is an integral part of
our living, our quality of life, and the Marseille coast is a fragile area where
the issues and challenges related to its preservation and its valuation should
be focused.
This is to meet the needs of the present without compromising, for future
generations, the possibility to meet their own needs. It is in this perspective
that the City of Marseille has made signifi cant projects: e.g., creating the
Calanques National Park, the largest European land and sea peri National
Park; Frioul Islands Marine Park; Operation Prado Reefs; and Management
Plan of the Rade.
Major international scientifi c events devoted to the marine world are therefore, in Marseille, their measurement environment. They had their place in
the range of cultural events marked Marseille-Provence 2013, European
Capital of Culture. During the 15th Symposium on Franco-Japanese
Oceanography, it has also become part of the twinning of Marseille with the
port city of Kobe, with which our city is linked for more than half a century.
Mayor of Marseille, Senator of Bouches-du-Rhône
Jean-Claude Gaudin
Foreword