Last Sunday, over 8000 visitors flooded Xiamen University's Xiang'an Campus during their annual Ocean Sciences Day open house, coordinated by COSEE China.

Over 50 laboratories and specially designed, interactive booths covering a wide range of ocean science and marine environmental topics were available.  The goal of all of these exhibits - to increase the citizenry's level of ocean literacy.

Guests were able to conduct experiments which explained the impact of increased nutrients in our waterways, examine key local coastal and near-shore ecosystems, learn about the wide diversity of marine life that exists, as well as learn about new technologies used in ocean science research.  Each exhibit also highlighted the importance of their own behaviors and taught visitors how they too can be better stewards of the ocean. 

In addition to the exhibits and labs, speakers gave talks throughout the day.  Some were scientific in nature - jellyfish taxonomy and their ecology; the ecology of the intertidal zone - while others had a more socio-economic angle, such as the state of global and China's fisheries development.  Yet others focused on the grandeur and mystery of the ocean in general, the ocean as viewed through the eyes of an underwater photographer. 

In spite of the somewhat crowded conditions, the day was an overall success, with many of the guests being repeat visitors, having coming to previous Ocean Science Days.  It was also a fulfilling day for the over 400 faculty, staff, students, and volunteers of the State Key Laboratory of Marine Environmental Science, the Key Laboratory of Coastal and Wetland Ecosystems, the College of Ocean and Earth Sciences and the College of the Environment and Ecology.  In this its 5th iteration, Xiamen University's Ocean Sciences Day is an integral part of Xiamen's World Ocean Week and a highlight among Xiamen's annual list of events.

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For more information regarding this event, article, or other COSEE China programs, please contact us at ehk.cosee.china@outlook.com.

(Photo: You Jiang)