ChallenGen Project and CEAB at the XIV Firamar

by Maria Casso

Last weekend, the 20th-21st July, the Centre for Advanced Studies of Blanes (CEAB - CSIC) participated at the XIV Firamar of Sant Pol de Mar. The Firamar is a fair of artisans and activities related to the sea, like many research projects developed at the CEAB. Our ChallenGen Project, which is developed partially at the CEAB, got involved in the event.

As a member of the ChallenGen Project and the CEAB, I stayed in our stand at the fair during Saturday afternoon, explaining the work researchers conduct at the CEAB about invasive species, climate change, conservation, ecology and biodiversity. It was really nice to see how interested are many people on our job!

The stand of the CEAB at the Firamar, with some visitors during Saturday afternoon. Children could paint their own real balloon fish!

ChallenGen project and UB at the III Posidonia Summer Festival in Colera

by Carles Carreras

The conference about how molecular tools can be used to study our marine neighbours.

The last 9th of August we participated at the III Posidonia Summer Festival in the beautiful town of Colera. This annual event, organised by the town council and the Som-hi Association, aims to approach people to the sea by organising a large variety of talks and activities, like scientific snorkel, marine biodiversity family workshops or a marine renewable energies conference.

In this context we had the opportunity to explain the ChallenGen Project to local villagers and tourists by describing them several examples of how molecular tools can be used to study our marine neighbours. The talk took place at the Colera Trull, an ancient olive oil cellar, and people from all ages had the opportunity to became scientists for an hour by investigating with genetic markers the life of some of the animals of the Mediterranean sea. We thus discovered how littoral fishes structure their populations and adapt to local environment conditions, or how marine turtles migrate and reproduce, among others interesting examples. The talk was followed by an intense debate were we could answer everybody’s questions including the importance to study and conserve our marine biodiversity.