Centre for Marine Socioecology

What Centre for Marine Socioecology does

The Centre for Marine Socioecology (CMS) is an Australian research collaboration established in November 2014 as a joint venture between the University of Tasmania (UTAS) and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), with additional support from the Australian Antarctic Division. Headquartered in Hobart, Tasmania, CMS integrates disciplines spanning physics, law, economics, biology, sociology, psychology, human health, art, media, philosophy and governance to address marine socioecological challenges including climate-driven species redistribution, biodiversity loss, marine pollution, coastal conflict and sustainable ocean governance. The centre is led by Director Prof Gretta Pecl (ARC Future Fellow, IPCC Lead Author, Fulbright Fellow) and Deputy Director Dr Beth Fulton (CSIRO Research Group Leader), and is governed by a Steering Committee drawn from CSIRO, UTAS institutions, AAD and independent government and industry representatives.

CMS does not sell commercial products; instead it operates a portfolio of research initiatives, educational programs and public engagement platforms funded through institutional grants. These include Redmap, a citizen science platform for mapping uncommon marine species; Future Seas, a UN Decade of Ocean Science collaboration with 100+ researchers; Sea Change Australia, an industry-facing climate resilience initiative for fisheries and aquaculture; Curious Climate and Curious Climate Schools, public engagement and K-12 programs; the Species on the Move international conference series (Hobart 2016, South Africa 2019, Taiwan 2026); the Big Fish Card Game and The Heat Is On as climate and ocean literacy tools; CMS Interdisciplinary Schools for postgraduate training; and a Pitch Funded Projects mechanism supporting student and early career research. Reach is anchored on over 75 researchers and 36 PhD students, with international engagement through conferences and the Future Seas collaboration.

Name

Centre for Marine Socioecology

Legal name

Centre for Marine Socioecology

Website

https://marinesocioecology.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Centre for Marine Socioecology is a University of Tasmania and CSIRO research collaboration in Hobart, Tasmania, integrating 10+ disciplines to deliver interdisciplinary marine socioecological research, training, and public engagement for government, industry, and communities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Marine Socioecology Research

NAICS

Research and Development in the Physical, Engineering, and Life Sciences (54171), Other Scientific and Technical Consulting Services (54169)

SIC

Services-Commercial Physical & Biological Research (8731)

akta.pro primary industry

Coastal & Marine Resources Administration (Oceans, Fisheries, Shorelines) (BPAIAMAI)

Keywords

• Marine socioecology research
• Interdisciplinary ocean research
• Citizen science engagement
• Marine policy research
• Climate adaptation research

Headquarters

HQ city

Hobart

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Research Grants and Funding: CMS receives joint funding from CSIRO and the University of Tasmania, with support from the Australian Antarctic Division. Additional funding comes from various research grants and competitive funding programs.

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Centre for Marine Socioecology (CMS) provides, develops and integrates multi-disciplinary research to better understand and manage Australia's oceans. CMS delivers research outputs, training and education programs, citizen science platforms, public engagement initiatives, conference series, and policy advisory services through a collaboration between the University of Tasmania and CSIRO, with support from the Australian Antarctic Division.

Product overview

The Centre for Marine Socioecology (CMS) is a research collaboration between the University of Tasmania and CSIRO, with support from the Australian Antarctic Division. Rather than a commercial product company, CMS provides a portfolio of research initiatives, educational programs, and public engagement tools focused on marine socioecological systems. The portfolio includes citizen science platforms (Redmap), international research collaborations (Future Seas), climate engagement initiatives (Curious Climate and Curious Climate Schools), industry partnerships (Sea Change Australia), educational games (Big Fish Card Game, The Heat Is On), conference series (Species on the Move), training programs (CMS Interdisciplinary Schools and Summer Schools), and research funding mechanisms (Pitch Funded Projects). These offerings work together to advance CMS's mission of providing excellence in research and research training for sustainable marine management.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Redmap: Invites the Australian community to spot, log and map marine species that are uncommon in Australia, or along particular parts of our coast.
• Sea Change Australia
• Curious Climate Tasmania
• Curious Climate Schools
• Future Seas
• Species on the Move

Products and services

• Redmap Australia Redmap Australia is a citizen science platform that invites the Australian community to spot, log and map marine species that are uncommon in Australia or along particular parts of the coast, contributing data to marine monitoring.
• Future Seas Future Seas is a UN Decade of Ocean Science initiative led by CMS, bringing together 100+ researchers across sciences, arts, health, and technology to tackle marine socioecological issues through interdisciplinary collaboration and foresighting methodology.
• Curious Climate Curious Climate is a Tasmania-focused public engagement platform that fosters public-driven scientific engagement and connects climate experts with audiences to provide credible climate change information.
• Curious Climate Schools Curious Climate Schools is an educational program connecting students with climate experts to answer their questions, offering resources, interactive sessions, and curriculum-linked activities on climate science and actions.
• Sea Change Australia Sea Change Australia is an industry initiative bringing together fishers, aquaculture producers, industry, managers, and researchers to facilitate knowledge exchange and co-develop climate-resilient options for Australian fisheries and aquaculture sectors.
• Species on the Move Conference Series The Species on the Move Conference Series is an international conference addressing climate-driven species redistribution, held in Hobart (2016), South Africa (2019), and planned for Taiwan (2026), with the 2016 edition reaching 275+ attendees from 20+ countries.
• Big Fish Card Game The Big Fish Card Game is a tabletop educational card game about sustainable fishing and ocean literacy, showcasing research about the importance of large fish in marine ecosystems.
• CMS Interdisciplinary Schools CMS Interdisciplinary Schools are intensive short courses (summer and spring schools) for graduate students and early career researchers on interdisciplinary research skills in marine social-ecological systems.
• CMS Pitch Funded Projects CMS Pitch Funded Projects are competitive funding awards supporting student and early career researcher projects covering topics such as ocean literacy, AI in marine research, climate education tools, and international conference participation.
• The Heat Is On The Heat Is On is a state-wide climate education and research tool for youth, enhanced through CMS pitch funding support to include professional redesign and video materials.

Quantifiable outcome

• 275+ conference attendees from 20+ countries reached through Species on the Move 2016 conference
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers4 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• University of Tasmania (UTAS)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2014Primary institutional partner hosting CMS. UTAS provides the administrative home and research infrastructure through the Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS). The collaboration has enabled interdisciplinary marine research across multiple UTAS colleges.
• Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2014Co-founding partner providing joint funding and research expertise. CSIRO Marine National Facility and researchers contribute to CMS projects including fisheries science, ecosystem modeling, and marine governance.
• Australian Antarctic Division (AAD)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 November 2014Supporting partner providing Antarctic and Southern Ocean research expertise and funding support to CMS initiatives.
• Institute of Marine and Antarctic Studies (IMAS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrimary research institute within UTAS that houses many CMS researchers and provides research infrastructure and postgraduate programs.
• Future Seas CollaborationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerUTAS-led collaboration of 100+ experts across sciences, arts, health, and technology. Includes researchers from Colleges of Arts, Law and Education, Health and Medicine, and Sciences & Engineering, plus Indigenous representatives globally.
• Redmap AustraliamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCMS-initiated citizen science platform inviting Australians to spot, log and map marine species that are uncommon in their region, building community engagement with marine monitoring.
• Sea Change AustraliamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitiative bringing together fishers, aquaculture producers, industry, managers, and researchers to facilitate knowledge exchange and co-develop climate-resilient options for Australian fisheries and aquaculture.
• Curious Climate TasmaniamajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCMS-supported public-driven scientific engagement initiative connecting climate experts with audiences to provide credible climate change information.
• GEOS (Global Engagement and Oceans Sciences)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerListed as a partner logo on CMS website, part of the Ocean Visions network.
• Women in Seafood Australasia (WISA)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCMS holds Digital Corporate Membership, supporting diversity and inclusion in the seafood and marine research sector.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Broad incumbents

• CSIRO (Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation): Australia's national science agency and CMS co-founding partner; operates across marine, climate, and ecosystem sciences at much greater scale, providing direct institutional overlap and the dominant source of CMS's research backbone.
• NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration): US federal agency for ocean and atmospheric science; while vastly larger and broader in mandate, NOAA's fisheries, climate, and coastal research programs overlap materially with CMS's socioecological and governance focus.

Direct peers

• GEOMAR Helmholtz Centre for Ocean Research Kiel: German marine research institute covering physical, chemical, biological, and socioeconomic ocean research with strong climate-change and governance themes; highly comparable in interdisciplinary marine socioecological scope.
• Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI): Leading US private nonprofit oceanographic research institution; comparable in integrating marine science with policy/societal dimensions and operating a large affiliated-researcher model similar to CMS.
• Alfred Wegener Institute (AWI): Germany's polar and marine research institute, integrating natural and social sciences to study climate-driven ocean change — directly comparable mission overlap with CMS, particularly on species redistribution and Southern Ocean research.
• Plymouth Marine Laboratory: UK-based marine research institute focused on ocean science, ecosystem dynamics, and marine socioecological impacts; comparable in scale, interdisciplinary orientation, and government-affiliated research mandate.
• Scripps Institution of Oceanography: UC San Diego's oceanographic research centre covering ocean physics, chemistry, biology, and climate; comparable academic-affiliated interdisciplinary marine research model with international convening power.
• Marine Biological Association (MBA): UK Learned Society for marine biology with century-long research tradition linking marine science to society; comparable in bridging research, policy engagement, and training for early-career researchers.
• Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS): Australia's tropical marine research agency, conducting long-term ocean monitoring, reef science, and ecosystem research — directly comparable in mission, government-funded research model, and Australian geographic focus to CMS.

Regional players

• National Oceanography Centre (NOC): UK-based integrated ocean research centre with strengths in ocean observation, climate, and marine socioecological science; comparable research model but operating primarily in a different geography from CMS.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CMS_UTas
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/centre-for-marine-socioecology

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Centre for Marine Socioecology