BaltGene: About BaltGene

About BaltGene

Gene level biodiversity of Baltic Sea populations

The BaltGene research project started in January 2009 and ended in December 2011. The project participants came from Sweden, Finland, Poland and Russia. The project addressed the importance of genetic biodiversity for adaptation to processes such as climate change, overfishing and other ecosystem functioning.

BaltGene was funded 2009 - 2011 by the European Community’s Seventh Framework Programme (FP/2007-2013) under grant agreement
n° 217246 made with BONUS, the joint Baltic Sea research and development programme, and from the Swedish Research Research Council for Environment, Agricultural Sciences and Spatial Planning (FORMAS), the Academy of Finland, the Ministerstwo Nauki i Szkolnictwa Wyźszego (Ministry of Science and Higher Education, Polen) and the Russian Foundation of Basic Research (RFBR). The Department of Marine Ecology at the University of Gothenburg hosted the project.

Goals

Genetic components of biodiversity are crucial for adaptation to climate change, sustainable fisheries and various other ecosystem functions. Yet, existing knowledge of gene level biodiversity of Baltic Sea populations is currently not considered in management of biodiversity. BaltGene will use existing knowledge and retrieve new knowledge when appropriate to answer the following four questions:

What are the key genetic resources characterising the Baltic Sea ecosystem, and to what extent are they unique?
How important is the genetic biodiversity of the Baltic Sea ecosystem to ecological resilience and sustainability of resource use?
What measures are needed to protect and sustainably manage important genetic biodiversity in the Baltic Sea ecosystem?
How should governance structures be fitted to accumulate the genetic level of biodiversity in management of the Baltic Sea ecosystem?