The Oceans Past Initiative (OPI) is a global research network for marine historical research. Our goal is to enhance knowledge and understanding of how the diversity, distribution and abundance of marine life in the world’s oceans has changed over the long term to better indicate future changes and possibilities. OPI welcomes anyone from any culture interested in the history of humankind’s interactions with life in the oceans, including scholars from all disciplines, marine policy makers and managers, and Indigenous knowledge holders.
Join the OPI
You can join the OPI today by creating an account at this link. Once you are approved by the initiative you will have access to contacts and resources available to members at a yearly subscription fee. The OPI is a not-for-profit organistion funded entirely by its members.
Fees
For the first year of operation membership dues are:
20 euro for people in full employment in OECD and BRICS countries
5 euro for students, retired people, and people from non-OECD/nonBRICS countries.
500 euro for institutional members.
Individuals who pay dues covering the period 1 Nov 2018-31 Dec 2021 may do so at a discounted rate:
50 euro for people in full employment in OECD and BRICS countries
10 euro for students, retired people, and people from non-OECD/nonBRICS countries.
Life membership for an individual may be obtained at a payment of 500 euro.
Proposed OPI Constitution changes
Rationale for draft changes: The Constitutional Revision strives to update the existing constitution to allow for online balloting in the election of Governing Board members.
Read the OPI constitution description of draft changes documents
Scientific Curiosity
Historical research is playing an increasingly important role in marine sciences. Historical data are also used in policy making and marine resource management, in asserting indigenous rights, and have helped to address the issue of shifting baselines for numerous species and ecosystems. Although many important research questions still remain unanswered, tremendous developments in conceptual and methodological approaches are expected to contribute to a comprehensive understanding of the global, cross cultural, history of human interactions with life in the seas. Based on our experiences and knowledge from the “History of Marine Animal Populations” project, the Oceans Past Initiative (OPI) has been established to assist in bringing together and connecting researchers and knowledge holders from all cultures interested in marine historical studies worldwide.
The network will commit itself to coordinate resources and provide useful information to the marine historical research community, such as by circulating news about grant calls and funding opportunities, information on recent papers in the field, announce successful projects, and distribute information for students on courses related to marine historical research. It is planned for OPI to become a venue where researchers worldwide interested in historical studies could virtually meet and discuss relevant issues globally. OPI can provide an umbrella, under which already completed, currently running, and also planned projects and initiatives can be linked, and make their results available for decision-makers and the interested public.