Projects

The MAREL activities are supported by national and international research projects funded by French and Brazilian agencies, as well as by European programs.

Ongoing projects

Collaborative research projects currently supporting the scientific activities of the MAREL.

TROPECOS project
2023 — 2028 · ANR / PEPR FairCarboN

TROPECOS

Tropical estuaries and mangroves in the global carbon cycle.

The TROPECOS project, funded by France 2030 and part of the PEPR Research Program FairCarboN, involves a scientific community working on the coastal carbon cycle in three French overseas territories (French Guiana, Guadeloupe, New Caledonia) and in two French international research structures with strong, long-standing partnerships: Vietnam (IRD LMI LECZ-CARE) and Brazil (CNRS IRL MAREL).

TROPECOS contributes to producing data and improving scientific knowledge on carbon fluxes in preserved and human-impacted tropical estuaries and mangroves, integrating spatial and temporal variability of rapidly-transforming tropical coasts, in order to predict how their greenhouse gas footprint might change in the coming decades.

Coordinator: G. Abril (CNRS, MAREL Director)
Brazilian sites: 4 mangrove sites (Rio de Janeiro and Pará states)
Website: tropecos.fr

2023 — 2026 · CAPES-COFECUB

EUTROBAYS

Eutrophication of tropical bays and lagoons.

The EUTROBAYS project is a French-Brazilian bilateral collaboration funded by CAPES (Brazil) and COFECUB (France). It supports research on the eutrophication of tropical bays and lagoons, focusing on the Rio de Janeiro coastal region.

The project provides:

  • 2 mobility grants (6–12 months) for Brazilian PhD students and post-docs in France
  • 4 short missions for researchers (2 France → Brazil, 2 Brazil → France)
  • Strengthening of the collaboration between UERJ, UFF, CNRS and French laboratories

Coordinators: G. Moser (UERJ, MAREL Co-director) & G. Abril (CNRS, MAREL Director)

EUTROBAYS project
COCOBRAZ project
2022 — 2026 · ANR-FAPESP

COCOBRAZ

Long-term evolution of the biogeochemical quality of Brazilian marine waters.

COCOBRAZ aims to characterize the evolution of the biogeochemical quality of Brazilian coastal waters over the last 20 years, using satellite remote sensing and in situ measurements. The project combines long-term time series analysis, algorithm development for water color products, and assessment of the impacts of anthropogenic and climatic pressures on tropical coastal ecosystems.

Coordinators: V. Vantrepotte (CNRS LOG) & M. Kampel (INPE, Brazil)
MAREL contribution: Theme 1 (biogeochemical cycles)

Past projects

Previous collaborations that paved the way for the creation of the IRL MAREL.

2020 — 2025 · CNRS INEE

IRP VELITROP

Vulnerability of tropical coastal ecosystems to eutrophication.

The International Research Project (IRP) VELITROP was the direct precursor of the IRL MAREL. Funded by CNRS Ecology & Environment (INEE), it structured French-Brazilian collaborations around the vulnerability of tropical coastal ecosystems to eutrophication.

The IRP VELITROP supported:

  • Field campaigns in Brazilian bays, lagoons and mangroves
  • Co-supervision of 19 PhD students and post-docs
  • Co-signing of more than 40 scientific articles
  • The structuring of a Franco-Brazilian community around Rio de Janeiro

Coordinator: G. Abril (CNRS)

IRP VELITROP fieldwork

Funding & support

The MAREL activities are supported by recurrent funding from CNRS and by competitive grants from French and Brazilian agencies.

CNRS

Recurrent funding of approximately 30 k€/year to support the daily operations of the laboratory, fieldwork, mobility and scientific animation in Rio de Janeiro.

French agencies

ANR, EC2CO, COFECUB, and PEPR FairCarboN fund research projects, student mobility and specific analytical campaigns.

Brazilian agencies

CAPES, CNPq and FAPERJ fund PhD and post-doc scholarships, mobility programs and research projects in Brazil.

See our publications