Ph.D. Programme Director: Prof. Paolo Galli, paolo.galli@unimib.it

The PhD in Marine Sciences, Technologies, and Management (MTM), acronym MTM, is a consortium doctorate offered by the University of Milano-Bicocca and the Italian Institute of Technology Foundation. The doctorate aims to identify and attract the most promising students to form a dynamic and diversified community and transform them into visionary scholars, innovative researchers, and creative leaders in the field of marine sciences. The two research entities intend to share their expertise on the principles of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) (SDG14, SDG16, SDG13, SDG12, SDG9, SDG8, and SDG7). The doctorate is in line with the European Union's Starfish 2030 Horizon Europe program coordinated by Italy and with some of the marine themes addressed by the emerging National Biodiversity Center: Node 1 and 2. The doctorate aims to promote the objectives of the national recovery and resilience plan (PNRR), particularly those contained in Missions 1, 2, and 4. Students will have the opportunity to use state-of-the-art laboratories available both at the Department of Environmental and Earth Sciences and at the Italian Institute of Technology. Furthermore, the MaRHE Center (Marine Research and High Education Center) infrastructure will be made available, a research center for higher education located in the Maldives, born from an agreement between the University of Milano-Bicocca and the Maldives. The complementarity of the laboratories of IIT and Bicocca will also significantly enhance students' educational growth, giving them the opportunity to acquire a cultural background not achievable except in the consortium form provided for the doctorate.

Participants in the doctorate will have the opportunity to attend, depending on their training project, international research institutes, including, but not limited to: University of Leeds, The University of Liverpool, Mediterranean Institute for Advanced Studies, Universidad de Valencia, The Maldives National University, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), University of Helsinki, University of South Pacific, Bar-Ilan University, University of Edinburgh, University of York, University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, Harvard University, Cambridge University, University of Dubai. Each student will be supervised by two professors or researchers from the University of Milano-Bicocca or the Italian Institute of Technology, as well as a training period of at least 6 (six) months at a foreign institute. The training path includes at least two publications in international journals with impact factor (ISI) and a thesis written in English.

The main themes of the doctorate are: marine biodiversity; marine ecology and biology; marine landscape ecology; oceanic processes and global change; international law of the sea; sustainable use of marine resources; peaceful resolution of maritime disputes; integrated coastal zone management; ocean technology; polar law; marine biogeochemical cycles; dynamics and restoration of coastal ecosystems; computational modeling; political, cultural, and social geography of the sea; ocean literacy and ocean citizenship; coastal and maritime tourism; vulnerability and environmental conflicts; marine renewable energies; ocean physics; new materials; chemical oceanography; psychological-social determinants of attitudes and behaviors in favor of the environment, biodiversity conservation, animal welfare, economic opportunities deriving from the marine world.

Once the training path is completed, PhDs will be able to enter the workforce as managers in the many sectors offered by the blue economy, including those related to marine sustainability issues, reducing the impact of the economy on oceans and coasts, circular economy, reducing pollution, increasing resilience to climate change, and reducing ecological footprint. It is envisaged that each doctoral student will carry out at least 100 hours of teaching during the doctoral program and a total of at least 8 ECTS credits, of which at least 2 ECTS credits of interdisciplinary teaching provided by the University's Doctoral School and at least 4 ECTS credits of specific teaching provided by the Doctoral Course.

The PhD in Marine Sciences, Technologies, and Management aims to train highly qualified professionals and researchers to assume leadership roles in the field of pioneering and disruptive innovation in marine sciences, both in Italy and abroad. The training of doctoral students will primarily, although not exclusively, be based on a research-oriented path focused on acquiring marine science skills, including the use of innovative technologies, and acquiring economic, legal, and social management tools, and teamwork. This growth path extends throughout the duration of the doctorate and will consist of the development of an experimental project under the direction of two supervising professors. The doctorate also aims to provide industry with professionals equipped to enhance their competitiveness on a national and international scale.

Since the early 2000s, the scientific community has renewed its interest in the oceans, also focusing on their educational value: from this perspective, the training program aims to contribute to the contemporary debate on ocean literacy, or a deeper understanding of the influence of the ocean on humans and humans on the ocean. High-level scientific skills will also enable PhDs to enter the world of research and academia as researchers and to become involved in the management and coordination of marine protected areas (MPAs) and other effective spatial conservation measures (OECMs).

Main themes of the doctorate:

• marine biodiversity;
• marine ecology and biology;
• marine landscape ecology;
• oceanic processes and global change;
• international law of the sea;
• sustainable use of marine resources;
• peaceful resolution of maritime disputes;
• integrated coastal zone management;
• ocean technology;
• polar law;
• marine biogeochemical cycles;
• dynamics and restoration of coastal ecosystems;
• computational modeling;
• political, cultural, and social geography of the sea;
• ocean literacy and ocean citizenship; 
• coastal and maritime tourism;
• vulnerability and environmental conflicts;
• marine renewable energies;
• ocean physics;
• chemical oceanography;
• new materials;
• Blue Economy.

PhD graduates and doctoral candidates admitted to the PhD program in Marine Sciences, Technologies, and Management have solid professional prospects, both in Italy and abroad, where the expertise acquired during the doctorate can be utilized. Among the most frequent employment opportunities are university research, both in Italy and abroad (in the field of marine sciences, a significantly reduced gender gap is observed compared to general science), research in public or private research institutions, and senior management positions in both the public and private sectors.

Regarding the private sector job market, the versatility acquired, also thanks to the international projection and the possibility of carrying out part of their research activity in collaboration with industrial entities, allows for a variety of employment opportunities, nationally and internationally, in all sectors where skills in the marine field are required, such as those offered by the Blue Economy. The Blue Economy encompasses all sectors related to oceans, seas, and coasts; it is a broad and rapidly evolving segment of the economy that has adopted significant measures to modernize and diversify over the last decade. Alongside traditional sectors, innovative sectors are evolving and growing, such as the restoration of areas damaged by human activities, ocean renewable energies, blue bioeconomy, biotechnologies, sustainable ecotourism, environmental certification, management of marine protected areas, STEM education, which offer new perspectives and create jobs. These jobs range from the restoration of ecosystems damaged by human impact, to the management of marine natural resources and knowledge of legal regulations fundamental for business growth, to the protection of marine ecosystems, pollution reduction, and increasing resilience to climate change, reducing ecological footprint. Such skills can also be employed in opportunities provided by the European Community policy, which aims to strengthen the protection of the marine environment by increasing marine protection by 30% from the current 11% to 2030 and achieve the EU's ambition to achieve climate neutrality. According to the European Union, the "sea" provides 4.5 million direct jobs. If the global blue economy were compared to a national economy, it would be the seventh largest in the world, and the ocean, as an economic entity, would be part of the G7. This economy operates in the planet's largest ecosystem: the oceans contain 97% of all global water and 80% of all life forms.

It is also emphasized that many members of the College and tutors involved in the training program collaborate with national and international companies and entities present in the territory on research topics of interest to the doctorate. This aspect strengthens the development of the course and produces a dual positive effect: it sometimes encourages companies to fund doctoral scholarships and brings doctoral students closer to industrial realities, thus facilitating their employment and professional opportunities.