Recent changes in the ecosystems of the Black Sea and Sea of Azov
13th - 16th September 2005
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Conference Centre, Donuzlav, Crimea, Ukraine

The marine environment and its resources seem to be the most important factor and natural resource of forward and sustainable development of the present-day society. Ukraine’s international authority as a marine state in a great degree depends on the condition of its southern “marine façade”.
The launch of a set of national programes concerned the marine economy can serve as an evidence of the government’s urgent attention to the problems of the state in this field. One of these programes is National Programe “Crimean Seacoast” where the problems of the coast protection and ecological state of the coastal areas are considered to be very important.

Organizers of the conference:
National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
Oceanological Centre (NAS of Ukraine)
Marine Hydrophysical Institute (NAS of Ukraine)
Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine
Tavrida National University
Foundation of Economical and Humane Links Development – Moscow–Crimea Foundation

The conference’s activities were divided into six scientific sections:
1. Interdisciplinary fundamental research of the coastal and shelf zones of the Azov–Black Sea Basin (Section “Ecoshelf”)
2. Design and development of the interdisciplinary oceanographic system of monitoring and forecast of the Black Sea state on the base of up-to-date technologies (Section “Operative Oceanography”)
3. Fundamental and applied physical and climatic research of the marine environment and the ocean–atmosphere climatic system (Section “Climate”)
4. Investigation of hydrophysical and biogeochemical processes determining stability and assimilation capacity of the large Black Sea ecosystem in order to manage and create methodology for estimation of the marine environment quality (Section “Stable Ecosystem”)
5. Design of automated systems for ecological control of water environment (Section “Ecohydrocontrol”)
6. Integration of science, education and industry as a factor of stable development of costal regions (Section “Integration”)

The conference was aimed to estimate the current state and changes that had been taking place in the ecosystems of the Black Sea and the Sea of Azov during the last years on the results of complex investigations conducted by scientists of Ukraine, Russia, Bulgaria, Georgia, and other Black Sea states as well as to define the ways of further development of study of ecosystem behavior under conditions of increasing anthropogenic load and considerable natural climatic anomalies that is necessary to make an optimal solution of economic and ecologic problems of the Azov-Black Sea Basin countries.
136 scientists (3 academicians, 3 corresponding members, 34 doctors of sciences, 48 candidates of sciences among them) from four countries took part in the conference.