The Institute of Oceanology of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IO PAN) was founded in 1983 as the successor to the Marine Station of the Academy. The Institute's mission is to generate knowledge required to support the understanding of the sustainable use and protection of the marine environment. This is carried out through innovative, high-level scientific and technological research; enhancing the understanding of the environment, and providing expertise and technology for stakeholders and society. The Institute conducts research in the Baltic and European Arctic Seas, specifically: The role of the oceans in climate change and its effects on European seas; The natural and anthropogenic variability of the Baltic Sea environment; Contemporary changes in the coastal ecosystems of shelf seas; Genetic and physiological mechanisms of marine organism functions and the principles of marine biotechnology.