8th Norwegian Environmental Toxicology Symposium (NETS) – Ocean Health in the Anthropocene

The biannual NETS symposium series is one of the primary arenas where the Norwegian scientific communities within eco- and environmental toxicology gather and discuss environmental challenges. NETS is an interdisciplinary symposium with focus on research-based solutions to solve challenges related to protection of the environment, and in particular increasing knowledge on how anthropogenic stressors affect ecosystems alone and in combination with other stressors. NETS aims to bring research, management, and industry together to address contemporary important topics, as well as those that will become the challenges of tomorrow. The overarching topic for NETS 2020 is the health of our oceans. The oceans act as a major sink for anthropogenic waste, and each year millions of tons of trash and other pollutants enter the ocean. Alarmingly, coastal and marine environments harbor vulnerable ecosystems that are among the most threatened ones in our world today. Other major challenges in modern society is linked to energy use and climate. Climate-induced changes in oceanographic parameters, including increased temperatures and ocean acidification, may also affect the environmental fate of pollutants, as well as how organisms, and ecosystems, respond to contaminants when they must cope with multi-stress situations. The health of our oceans is of high societal concern and strongly linked to the Sustainable Development Goals adopted recently by the UN, which includes climate, oceanic and coastal matters. Furthermore, the UN proclaimed the Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030), urging a better understanding of ocean stressors. Thus, the 8th NETS conference, targeting environmental concerns and ocean health, is perfectly aligned with these initiatives.