Dear JPI Oceans community, dear friends of the ocean,
 
As we all go through this extraordinary time, we at the JPI Oceans Secretariat would like to express our thoughts and support to all those directly affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, and those currently living under lockdown, quarantine or self-isolation.
 
The pandemic also poses considerable challenges to the regular working routine of JPI Oceans. The JPI Oceans Management Board, Internal Advisory Committee, and all other official as well as internal meetings have now moved entirely to an online format.
 
As you may have already seen on our website and social media channels, research proposal deadlines for the Aquatic Pollutants Joint Call and the MarTERA Joint Call have been postponed due to the recognized challenges in accessing and submitting work under these difficult conditions (more information on deadlines below).
 
Unfortunately, we also had to postpone our Stakeholder Forum event planned for 8 April 2020 in Brussels. While we initially considered an online alternative, we would still much rather interact with you in person. We are therefore planning for an alternative date to host the Forum in September, to be able to give you the appropriate platform to voice your views and priorities for the revision of the new JPI Oceans Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda. We hope it will be safe to see you in September.
 
Since mid-March, the JPI Oceans Secretariat has also moved from our vibrant open-space office environment in Brussels to complete remote work. Needless to say, this experience has massively changed our work dynamics and we are getting used to new ways of staying in touch and efficiently carrying out our respective and collective tasks. We start each day with a morning coffee online briefing and hold our regular team meeting online each week, connecting from our respective homes in Belgium, France, Germany and Switzerland.
 
We remain extremely committed to bringing forward the good progress JPI Oceans is making this year with as little delay as possible, despite the obvious challenges. Rest assured, we will be keeping you posted each step of the way.
 
With our best wishes,
 
The JPI Oceans Secretariat