The Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea Research (IOW) was founded in 1992. IOW's research program focuses on coastal oceans and marginal seas, with an emphasis on the Baltic Sea. IOW's goal is to understand how the Sea's ecosystems react in response to global warming and intensive human activities. IOW scientists have developed an interdisciplinary, systematic approach:

• Looking at the Baltic's fundamental processes 
• Examining the interactions between these processes
• Addressing the past variability of coastal and marginal seas to predict future developments
• Dealing with the effects of anthropogenic activities and the resulting environmental problems in order to develop scientifically based solutions.

IOW has many joint projects and research activities, including: an Interdisciplinary department in Maritime Systems at the University of Rostock, the Leibniz ScienceCampus Phosphorus Research Rostock, SECOS and KüNO.