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ProBleu Catalogue Joins UNESCO-IOC Blue Thread Network
10 July 2025
ProBleu’s innovative online ocean and water literacy catalogue has been officially accepted into the Blue Thread Network; a global initiative led by UNESCO-IOC to promote ocean literacy, sustainable ocean stewardship, and community resilience through education and collaboration.
This recognition marks a significant milestone in ProBleu’s mission to empower individuals, educators, and communities with accessible educational resources about the importance of ocean and water in our daily lives.
Designed to be inclusive, engaging and interactive, the tool supports learning on topics such as biodiversity, ocean chemistry and eutrophication, making it ideal for educators to prepare engaging material for their lessons.
As one of six partners in ProBleu, Plymouth Marine Laboratory (PML) has contributed teaching aids that interactively link educators and students to state-of-the-art marine and freshwater science, through observation technology, models and simulations.
Access PML’s ProBleu Science Story on Exploring Biodiversity here >>
A growing community resource, the catalogue welcomes contributions from all teachers and educators, allowing them to showcase their work and amplifying global ocean literacy efforts.
Joining the Blue Thread Network not only validates the impact of the work by the ProBleu project but also connects it with a global community of organisations committed to sustainable ocean futures. The team are excited about the new opportunities this membership presents for partnerships, innovation and reaching wider audiences.
Dr Gennadi Lessin, Marine System Modeller at Plymouth Marine Laboratory and ProBleu Project Coordinator for PML, commented:
“We are thrilled to join the UNESCO-IOC Blue Thread Network and work together with the global community to advance ocean literacy and sustainable ocean stewardship. We invite teachers, educators, projects and organisations worldwide to explore our ProBleu catalogue and contribute their own teaching materials to help our common cause. Whether your teaching focuses on the global ocean, your local river, or a pond near the school – your resources are welcome in the ProBleu catalogue”.
Dr Benjamin O’Driscoll, Research Software Engineer (Data Visualisation) at Plymouth Marine Laboratory and lead developer of the ProBleu catalogue, said:
“Working alongside others within PML to develop the ProBleu catalogue of teaching aids has been a great experience. We have workshopped this catalogue with educators across Europe to create an application that is accessible, functional and easy to use. This acceptance into the Blue Thread Network rewards the effort for all who contributed – well done everyone!”
A big thanks to the Blue Thread Network and UNESCO-IOC for this honour and for boosting enthusiasm to continue contributing meaningfully to the collective efforts toward global ocean literacy and sustainability.