Between 28 November and 2 December 2022, a group of eight students, part of the cohort of twelve students currently following the M.Sc. in Applied Oceanography course at the University of Malta, attended an intensive week of practical sessions at the University of Cádiz in Spain. This activity forms part of the Short Course on Marine Data Literacy (SEA-EU MDL), which is offered by the European University of the Seas (SEA-EU).
The SEA-EU MDL course is an intensive course aimed at acquainting students with the domain of marine data, as well as the tools available to transform it into information and knowledge about our seas. The course is coordinated by a Board of Studies made up of representatives of the universities making up the SEA-EU alliance, and open to students from all over the alliance and beyond.
This year the course is in its second iteration, and for the first time, it has been offered as a Blended Intensive Programme, with the physical sessions hosted by the University of Cádiz. The virtual element of the course consisted of a series of 10 introductory lectures delivered by academics from universities in the SEA-EU alliance, as well as representatives of the International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange (IODE) and the European Marine Observation Data Network (EMODnet). 52 students followed these lectures.
The practical sessions were held in person in Cádiz. Academics from the University of Cádiz, the University of Gdansk, the University of Split and Dr. Adam Gauci from the University of Malta, delivered the practical sessions, which were followed by 35 students. Ms. Audrey Zammit from the Oceanography Malta Research Group (OMRG) of the Department of Geosciences accompanied Dr. Gauci on the trip to Cadiz.
The programme followed at the University of Cádiz was very hectic, with two practical sessions being held each day. Various social activities were also included which gave the students and academics an opportunity to mingle and share experiences and ideas. The highlight of the programme was a field trip to the Cape of Trafalgar and Bolonia Sand Dunes.
