Finissage of the exhibition "newspectives - Marine Ecosystems in Transition" with evening lecture and performance by Astrid Brünner (Greifswald), Susanne Gabler (Wismar) and Dr Marie-Katherin Zühlke (Greifswald)

The interdisciplinary performance combines dance, sound and word art. Various scientists conducting research in the marine context have their say in audio recordings. In close collaboration, Dr Marie-Katherin Zühlke, Astrid Brünner and Susanne Gabler developed a work of art that represents the convergences and intersections between the fields of art and science resulting from the exhibition project. The protagonists also thematise their connection with and concern for our marine waters, the balance of which has now been permanently disturbed.

Followed by a public evening lecture:
Transformation and adaptation of seagrass through time, from the age of dinosaurs to the modern Baltic Sea
Dr Mia Bengtsson
University of Greifswald, Institute of Microbiology

Seagrasses have an evolutionary history on land yet have adapted to a life in the ocean during a turbulent time on our planet. The extinction of the dinosaurs marked the beginning of a successful journey of seagrass into the oceans. However, the adaptation is still ongoing and modern challenges require seagrass to adapt in new ways. The Baltic Sea is a young and changing ecosystem that has been colonised by seagrass only during the last 8000 years. Eelgrass (Zostera marina) is a prominent habitat-forming seagrass in the Baltic Sea which has faced declines in the last half century due to anthropogenic pressures. Initial efforts to restore lost meadows have shown promising results, yet are time-consuming and small-scale. How can we help seagrass reestablish and adapt in the modern Baltic Sea? What can we as humans learn from the journey of seagrass about adapting to new environments in a sustainable way?

Moderation: Angela Hoppe