M2 - Biodiversity and conservation of marine ecosystems course (BCEM)

Marine ecosystems are subject to increasing anthropogenic pressures (overexploitation of resources, pollution, introduction of species, climate change, artificialization of environments), leading to a deterioration in their diversity and the ecosystem services they provide. This state of affairs has created a heightened awareness of the issue, resulting in a strengthening of public policies (e.g. Convention on Biological Diversity, Water Framework Directive, Marine Strategy Framework Directive). Highlights of these policies include the introduction of monitoring systems and the development of bioindicators to verify or restore the good ecological status of environments, and the creation of networks of marine-protected areas.

This course aims to provide the conceptual and practical foundations needed to understand the responses of biodiversity and marine ecosystems to the various anthropogenic pressures to which they are subjected, and to define appropriate management policies. Building on a general corpus of theoretical knowledge on various facets of ecosystem diversity and functioning, this course pays particular attention to the tools actually used in the assessment and management of coastal and offshore marine environments. In particular, this applies to the assessment of natural and anthropogenic threats and their impacts on marine environments, or the monitoring of ecosystem health through the development of indicators. These approaches are all prerequisites for the implementation of reasoned and efficient management measures, including marine-protected areas. The teaching program places considerable emphasis on practical field and laboratory work, integrated projects and presentations by industry professionals. This should enable each student to develop a critical eye for management policies based on current knowledge of ecosystem dynamics, and to be a driving force behind proposals.

First half-year

A minimum of 21 ECTS specific to a training pathway is required to consider that the corresponding competency has been acquired.

List of UE courses :

• Ecology of coastal communities (6 ECTS)
• Instrumentation and data acquisition in oceanography (6 ECTS)
• Ecology and functioning of coastal ecosystems (6 ECTS)
• Biodiversity dynamics and conservation (6 ECTS)
• Oceanographic data processing methods (6 ECTS)
• Management and Conservation of Marine Ecosystems (6 ECTS)
• Major challenges facing polar oceans: biogeochemistry and ecosystems (6 ECTS)
• Anthropogenic impacts on coastal ecosystems (6 ECTS)
• Biology and operational taxonomy of marine organisms (6 ECTS)
• Management and conservation of exploited marine resources (3 ECTS)
• Chemical contaminants and biological proliferation (3 ECTS)
• Coastal ecology practices (6 ECTS)
• Biogeography and Ecoregionalization (3 ECTS)

Second semester

Long master's internship (30 ECTS, 6 months) runs from January to June, in a laboratory or company. The internship can be carried out in France or abroad, and leads to the writing of a thesis, to be defended in June.