Have you taken the Upgoer Five Challenge? IOOS tried to explain our mission using only the ten hundred most used English words. It's a neat exercise to break down ideas--and unfortunately for us "ocean" isn't one of the words!

The Working Together Big Blue Water Watching and Remembering Group

We study the big blue water that covers most of our world. We see how it moves, how hot or cold it is, what animals and growing things live in it, from very big to so very tiny you c...an not see them. We study what is in the big blue water, living and not living, and how much of it there is in this place or that place. We also use computers to learn about the big blue water--some computers are used by people, some are out in (and on!) the big blue water, and some are on the animals that live in the big blue water. We have people in our office who know how to talk to computers and they tell them how to remember and all the facts we learn about the big blue water. They also tell the computers to make those facts work together and to work with other things we (and our friends) learned. Then we share those computers with everyone all over the world. We do this because the big blue water does cover so much of the world, but also it helps make things happen on land too, so it is important to understand it. Rain (sometimes a lot of rain), wind, how hot or cold it is outside your house, if the water you drink or the food you eat are safe--all of these things and more can be changed by the big blue water. People work on the water, they live near the water, and sometimes they also play in and near the water. The things we learn and share help other people stay safe, make money, save time, and not die.

The Biology and Ecosystems Panel of the Global Ocean Observing System (GOOS BioEco), the Ocean Biogeographic Information System (OBIS), and the Marine Biodiversity Observation Network (MBON) of the Group on Earth Observations Biodiversity Observation Network (GEOBON) have entered into an agreement to establish a global marine biodiversity observation network.

Monitoring the ocean’s biodiversity and living resources underpins protection of ocean ecosystems and contributes to... sustainable development. The Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO, through leading the Global Ocean Observing System and OBIS, is committed to coordinate and support the global effort of building the knowledge base for improved global governance and for a healthy ocean.
- Vladimir Ryabinin, IOC Executive Secretary