The Indonesian Archipelago consists of about 17,500 islands and has a coastline of 81,000 km. The region is a centre of biodiversity with highly productive ecosystems such as coral reefs, mangroves and sea grass meadows. These ecosystems stabilize the coastlines, are repositories of significant genetic and biological information, and play a vital role in the lives of coastal population as a source of food, energy and income. Today these coastal ecosystems are under enormous pressure from rapid social and economic changes.
The overarching goal of the SPICE Programme is to address the scientific, social and economic issues related to the management of the Indonesian coastal ecosystems and their resources. In addition to strengthening the existing scientific data base, the programme promotes capacity and infrastructure building in the marine sector in Indonesia and Germany and contributes to education and public awareness.
The first phase of the SPICE Programme (2003-2007) provided significant information on the structure and functioning of coastal ecosystems covering mangroves, coral reefs, coastal pelagic systems and peat swamps, and on their alterations due to human interventions. The focus on natural sciences was complemented by social science during the second phase (2007-2010). After the evaluation of both programme phases the Indonesian-German Steering Committee on Earth and Ocean Science recommended the continuation of the SPICE Programme. New research topics were jointly agreed as follows:
1. Marine Biodiversity, Food Security & Sustainability
2. Climate Change and the Oceans: Carbon Sequestration in the Indonesian Seas & their Global Significance
3. Understanding and Managing the Resilience of Coral Reefs and Associated Social Systems
4. Terrestrial Influences on Mangroves Ecology and Sustainability of their Resources
5. Marine Geology and Geochemistry
6. Ocean Renewable Energy
7. Capacity Building
Project Partners (Germany) |
International Project Partners | |
|---|---|---|
| Universities and Research Institutions Bremen University of Bremen - Department of Marine Chemistry (UnivB-FB2) - Center for Environmental Research and Sustainable Technology Bremerhaven Alfred-Wegener-Institute for Polar and Marine Research Geesthacht Research Centre Geesthacht Hamburg University of Hamburg - Institute of Oceanography Jena Leibniz Institute for Natural Product Research and Infection Biology Kiel Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel - Research and Technology Centre Westcoast Oldenburg Carl von Ossietzky University Warnemünde Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research Private Sector Alpha Biocare Company, Düsseldorf 4H Jena Engineering Ltd., Jena Deutsche Umwelt AG Kiel |
Universities and Research Institutions Bandung Technology Institute Bandung Bogor Agricultural University Gondol Research Institute for Mariculture Jakarta Research Center for Marine and Fisheries Product Processing and Biotechnology Makassar Hasanuddin University - Centre for Coral Reef Research Palembang Research Institute for Open Water Fisheries Pekanbaru University of Riau - Department of Fisheries and Marine Sciences - Department of Chemistry Purwokerto Jenderal Soedirman University Semarang University of Diponegoro Surabaya Institute for Technology Private Sector PT. Nuansa Ayu Karamba, Jakarta |
Contacts 
Working Groups 
Former Working Groups