Dates and location: Akontisma Hotel, Nea Karvali, Kavala, Greece 3rd - 12th September 2018 The overall objective of the 1st ODYSSEA Summer School is to stimulate a scientific dialogue and create a learning experience about operational oceanography in the Mediterranean context. More precisely, after the end of the program, the trainees, coming from both sides of the Mediterranean Sea basin, will be able to: • Understand the concept of operational oceanography • Use the ODYSSEA project platform for retrieving, managing and processing oceanographic and environmental data of the Mediterranean Sea • Explore the Copernicus Marine Environment Monitoring Service (CMEMS) products, learn the data and parameters provided, download and process these datasets • Retrieve and use satellite datasets and explore databases on the marine environment • Learn about the modern developments on marine instruments and sensors used in field sampling for operational oceanographic monitoring • Get acquainted with the use of operational forecasting mathematical models e.g., hydrodynamic, wave, water quality models, etc. Monitoring and forecasting of the marine environment is a challenge for oceanographers, as in the last few decades marine ecosystems have been subject to intense human pressure (pollution, extensive fishing and aquaculture, coastal erosion, tourism, etc.), coupled with climate change. Therefore, the protection and sustainable economic exploitation of these ecosystems requires real-time monitoring and operational prognostic modeling. In parallel, the volume of data concerning the marine environment collected both by satellites and on-site monitoring instruments is enormous and can be categorised as “Big Data”. All these data need to be retrieved, processed, interpreted and then fed into numerical models for reanalysis and forecasting. The 1st ODYSSEA Summer School introduces trainees to all stages of operational oceanography, aiming towards the Blue Growth of the Mediterranean Sea. Full details and registration: http://odysseaplatform.eu/events/operational-oceanography-for-science-business-and-society/