"Our vision for the marine environment is clean, healthy, safe, productive and biologically diverse oceans and seas. Within one generation, we want to have made a real difference."

(UK government, Safeguarding our seas, 2007)

Oceans 2025 is the NERC-funded programme providing the science to achieving the UK government's vision for the marine environment. Starting in 2007, this five-year strategic research programme will improve our understanding of how the ocean behaves, how it is changing, and what this means for society.

Oceans 2025 has been designed in collaboration with six other marine partner organisations in the UK (MBA, NOCS, PML, POL, SAHFOS and SMRU) and involves a wide community of insitute and university researchers, industry, policy makers and the public, to address nine major themes:

1. Climate, ocean circulation and sea level
2. Marine biogeochemical cycles
3. Shelf and coastal processes
4. Biodiversity and ecosystem functioning
5. Continental margins and the deep ocean
6. Sustainable marine resources
7. Technology development
8. Next generation ocean prediction
9. Sustainable observations in the marine environment

NERC is investing annually in the order of £24 million into the Oceans 2025 programme, nearly half its total spend on marine science.

SAMS is involved in Oceans 2005 themes 1, 3, 4, 8 and 10. CCAP is also supported through Oceans 2025.

Prior to Oceans 2025 NERC funded the Northern Seas Programme at SAMS (2001-2007).