Type of Structure: | committee / commission |
Regional Scope: | global |
Parent Organisations: | UNESCO.UN |
Child Organisations: | GCOS, GOOS, WCIRP, WCRP
No more in operation: ACSYS, IGOS |
Duration : | 0 to present |
Contact Address: | no office contact defined |
General information and objectives
The IOC was established as a body with functional autonomy within UNESCO. Its functions are to develop, recommend and coordinate an international programme for scientific investigation of the oceans and related ocean services, which call for concerted action by its members. Through the study of the Tropical Oceans and Global Atmosphere (TOGA), the World Ocean Circulation Experiment (WOCE), the project on Ocean Dynamics and Circulation on the Continental Shelf and the Development of a Global Ocean Observing System (with WMO, UNEP and ICSU), the IOC promotes marine scientific investigations in the field of ocean dynamics and climate. Other IOC programmes focus on ocean science in relation to living resources (jointly with FAO), on marine pollution, ocean mapping etc. Since 1992/93 the IOC has been one of the co-sponsors of WCRP.