28-Nov-2008: During the Intergovernmental Conference on Oceanographic Research, 1960, at which the setting up of an Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
was 
recommended, certain initial tasks for the new Commission were
outlined and amongst these was included the requirement for a structure
to co-ordinate international oceanographic data exchange (already at that time it was recognized that oceanographic exchange was impossible without global access to data).
The
first formal establishment of a Working Group on Exchange of
Oceanographic Data was made by IOC Resolution I-9 adopted at the First
Session of the Commission in October 1961, which also prescribed that:
"The mission of this Working Group shall be the
facilitating of exchange of oceanographic data, the standardization of
forms for reporting and coding data, the encouragement of the
preparation of data catalogues, and the assistance of development of
national oceanographic data centres."
We therefore consider 1961 as the official "date of birth" of the
IODE, making 2011 the 50th anniversary of the IOC Committee on
International Oceanographic Data and Information Exchange (IODE).
To
celebrate this important milestone in the history of the IOC (which
will celebrate its 50th anniversary in 2010) we are inviting all
members of the IODE familty to dig deep into the historical archives
for old reports, photographs, anecdotes, etc. The IODE Secretariat will
post these items on the IODE web site starting December 2008.
A Table of Contents of the IODE Archive will be made available and regularly updated.
