Although it opened its doors in June 2006, the origins of the Toralla Marine Science Station, Ecimat, date back to 1999, when the then Vice-Rector for Research and now Rector of the University of Vigo, Salustiano Mato, accepted the request of a group of researchers who requested to have scientific facilities by the sea. The current director of Ecimat, Jesús Souza Troncoso, was in charge this Friday, at the commemorative event for the tenth anniversary of the station, of recalling its origins and its evolution up to the present, as well as setting out the future challenges that the marine research centre faces. But beyond the memories and what is yet to come, the celebration of, in Souza’s words, “10 years of marine vocation”, was marked by the signing by the rectors of the universities of Vigo and the Basque Country of the agreement for the constitution of the Spanish node of the European Marine Biological Resource Centre, EMBRC, one of the 38 research infrastructures identified by the European Commission as strategic for Europe, which focuses its activity on blue biotechnology, a discipline that deals with the exploration and exploitation of marine organisms, with the aim of using these and their derivatives for the identification, processing and development of new active ingredients of marine origin.
With the signing of the agreement signed today by Salustiano Mato and Iñaki Goirizelaia, the structure that represents Spain in EMBRC is created, made up of Ecimat and the Plentzia Marine Station of the UPV/EHU and joined by marine research centers from nine other European countries. “This node will make us more visible and attractive to researchers who want to come here and also for our research staff to go anywhere”, assured the rector of the University of Vigo, who expressed his conviction that “a promising future awaits us”. For his part, the rector of the UPV/EHU highlighted the importance of the agreement signed today “which establishes a framework and opens up great possibilities in three dimensions: research, teaching and transfer”, said Goirizelaia. The signing of the agreement was followed by the unveiling of a plaque that identifies Ecimat as a member of the Spanish node of EMBRC.
The #attitudecimat according to Jesús Souza Troncoso
After recalling the genesis of the project and its evolution until it became a reality, the director of Ecimat referred to the collaboration that since 2000, following the study of the effects of the Prestige tide, the universities of Vigo and the Basque Country have maintained, a collaboration reinforced in 2013 when each marine station was invited to participate as associate members of EMBRC. “In addition to the important benefits for our knowledge ecosystems, the participation of our centers in large European research infrastructures represents a great opportunity to guarantee their future sustainability, since it will allow us to access consortia in international projects and sources of funding that we could not otherwise aspire to,” said Souza Troncoso, who thanked the collaboration provided during these years by local, regional, national and international administrations. A support that the director of Ecimat demanded to be maintained in the future so that the marine station of the University of Vigo can achieve its objectives, which include, among others, having better human capital, promoting research excellence through the continuous training of technical and research staff, specialization in the provision of high-value services for research and investment in new facilities, which expand the current capacity of Ecimat.
Souza Troncoso placed special emphasis when referring to the importance of human capital, assuring that the station “was very lucky, the commitment of its staff is total and the conviction that it can always be done better, was the key element when it came to following this path. We call it #attitudecimat, in line with the corporate hashtag #attitudeuvigo and it could be summarized as continuous improvement and a vocation of service to marine researchers”, explained the station director, who emphasized that the answer to a large part of the challenges facing today’s society, such as climate change or clean energy, are in the seas and therefore marine research is a priority, and more so in a region like Galicia.
Heading upwind in a sea of turbulence
The speeches of Laura Yuste, representative of the Secretariat of State of the Ministry of Economy and Trade and Jaime Aneiros, Councilor for Budget and Finance of the City Council of Vigo, were followed by that of the rector of the Universidad do País, who began his speech in Galician to congratulate Ecimat on its tenth anniversary and to emphasize the importance of the agreement signed today. “From Norway to Crete, the EMBRC map reflects a row of points that work in a coordinated manner and that in Spain has two representatives, one in the eastern Cantabrian Sea and the other in the south of Galicia, along the more than 8000 kilometers of coastline of the country,” said Goirizelaia.
After thanking the work carried out over the past decade by the staff and management of Ecimat, the rector of the University of Vigo assured that he was proud of the researchers who work at the station and regretted “the great wounds” inflicted in recent years of crisis in the process of attracting and retaining talent. “When the crisis, which some have used as an excuse to deal tremendous blows, passes, we will have a better future”, predicted the rector, who was convinced that “we will advance with the wind in our sails in this sea of turbulence”.
Source: duvi
