57 countries now represented in VIRTUE
Sweden, Germany, USA and Spain were the partner countries in the EU Erasmus+ funded project VIRTUE-s 2017-2020.
Sweden, Germany, USA and Spain were the partner countries in the EU Erasmus+ funded project VIRTUE-s 2017-2020.
VIRTUE will soon be even better!
VIRTUE has been granted 400 000 Euro from Erasmus+ for upgrading with many new features as the iNaturalist´s species identification tool, microplastic identification, invasive marine species etc
VIRTUE was established in 1997 as a joint research and educational project by the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science, USA, the Centre for Science Education at the University of Bergen, Norway and the University of Gothenburg, Sweden.
The Erasmus funded project VIRTUE-s officially ended on the 31 August 2020. Now the EU reviewer has awarded the project with high scores branding the project “Best practice”.
VIRTUE's distance learning course "Promoting Ocean Literacy and Project-Based Learning by Monitoring Biodiversity" is now available and open to everyone on VIRTUE's website!
The language of the course is English. No pre-registration required.
The course includes four pre-recorded lectures, more than 30 videos and many literature tips.
In the spring 2020, when many schools were closed due to the pandemic of Covid-19, VIRTUE-s launched a digital global classroom for international collaborations on marine biology topics. Students participating in the project from home, were able to follow the program and met researchers and experts from universities and organizations from four countries. The content is connected to participants local curricular demands, but a passing grade will also grant an exclusive diploma of achievement signed by participating universities.
A brand new course PROMOTING OCEAN LITERACY AND PROJECT-BASED LEARNING BY MONITORING BIODIVERSITY will be launched 20th of April
VIRTUE meets Arts - and vice versa!
VIRTUE is also about describing all fascinating organisms on VIRTUE discs.
Students at Hebbelschule in Kiel, one of VIRTUE-s partners, have contributed to a beautiful and inspiring art exhibition in their assembly hall..
The object of this paper is to explore if there is a more environmentally friendly and ecologically sustainable alternative to the copper oxide based marine antifouling paints commonly used today. The study revolves around the question if mixing cayenne pepper, more specifically the molecule capsaicin, with biocide free antifouling paint will enhance the paint’s antifouling properties.
VIRTUE has received EU funding of 310224 euros through the "Erasmus + Strategic Partnership School program" to develop and internationalise the marine part of VIRTUE.
We have written a chapter for the book “Exemplary Practices in Marine Science Education - A Resource for Practitioners and Researchers” (Springer).
The book will be published in spring 2018.
The purpose of the book is to inform, inspire, and provide an intellectual forum for practitioners and researchers in this particular context. Proposed subject areas include sections on marine science education in formal, informal and community settings.
After a seven months' voyage, the T/S Gunilla moored at the historic port town of Portsmouth this weekend (June 13-14 2015), while the project leaders of Virtue, Susan and Mikael stayed in a nearby hotel after a short flightfrom Gothenburg.
What does marine growth look like at the other side of the Atlantic? Now students from Öckerö upper secondary high school in Sweden can answer that question.
There is a big difference in fouling depending on the material used, according to a German study.
In Virtue CDs of polycarbonate is used, but you have every possibility to use also other material. In a school project in Kiel, Germany, they have tested various types of substrate in the form of garbage, to see what is growing on them. The results show that fouling (mainly barnacles and mussels) prefer glass over wood and alumninium.
A Swedish researcher needs your help to report findings of the invasive species Crassostrea gigas (Japanese oyster) in Sweden. (Use the Virtue map to find the coordinates)
During 2005-2007 the replica of the Swedish East Indiaman "Götheborg" sailed to China around the world and back home - with Virtue discs attached to the front of the ship's bow.