“Our Ocean from Space”: Climate risk and marine ecosystems seen from above – an artistic and scientific journey at ECCA2025

As part of the rich cultural programme of the European Climate Change Adaptation Conference (ECCA2025), the city of Rimini hosts the international exhibition Our Ocean from Space. A collaboration between the European Space Agency (ESA), UNESCO, and several partners including Mercator Ocean, Copernicus Marine, Institut Cartogràfic i Geològic de Catalunya (ICGC), Planetek Italia, Shom, Prométhée Earth Intelligence, the Maldives Space Research Organisation (MSRO), and the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change (CMCC), the exhibition explores the vulnerability of marine ecosystems and the crucial role of satellite observations in supporting ocean monitoring and climate resilience.

The exhibition, on display in Piazzale Boscovich until 16 July 2025, is organized in collaboration with Rimini Blue Lab, the local social and cultural innovation lab co-funded by the ESF+ Emilia-Romagna Regional Programme 2021–2027, and offers the public a powerful visual journey through satellite data and high-resolution imagery that show the state of our ocean and its transformations, from sea surface temperature to phytoplankton blooms, sea level rise, coastal erosion, and plastic pollution.

We are pleased to highlight this exhibition as a prime example of how scientific knowledge, public awareness, and policy action can converge to support adaptation efforts in coastal areas – those most exposed to the impacts of climate change. Through satellite data, we gain a clearer understanding of ocean dynamics and the pressures they face, allowing us to develop more effective and informed resilience strategies.