The M.A.R.E. project – Marine Adventure for Research and Education – was launched in 2022 as an initiative of the Fondazione Centro Velico Caprera with One Ocean Foundation as its scientific partner. The project is unique: a travelling scientific platform dedicated to monitoring the Mediterranean Sea and spreading ocean literacy. Onboard researchers, students, sailors and citizens become protagonists of a collective mission to collect data and samples, observe species and habitats, study pollution and biodiversity, thus helping to fill the many knowledge gaps that still exist about this extraordinary yet fragile sea.

The project follows four main routes (the Tyrrhenian Sea, the Adriatic Sea, the Northwestern Mediterranean, and the Eastern Mediterranean), providing for the first time a comprehensive overview of the basin’s health. With the involvement of the scientific community and the collaboration of national and international institutions, M.A.R.E. aspires to become a reference point for research, citizen science, and science communication, while at the same time strengthening the bond between humans and the sea and promoting concrete actions for its protection and conservation.

Since its inception, the M.A.R.E. project has sailed over 6,700 miles of sea in 267 days of navigation, welcoming more than 470 people on board, including 46 researchers from 20 different scientific institutes.

The MARE project by One Ocean Foundation set sail in 2022 from the island of La Maddalena, marking the start of its scientific research activities at sea. Initial investigations included visual monitoring, environmental DNA sampling to detect cryptic or threatened species—such as cetaceans, elasmobranchs, and invasive alien species—and zooplankton sampling to assess marine pollution levels. Over time, the activities expanded: in 2024, bioacoustic monitoring was introduced to detect cetaceans and evaluate the impact of underwater noise pollution. The project’s catamaran has thus become an international research platform, hosting Italian and international scientists and supporting the development of academic theses and scientific publications. Onboard, alongside researchers, citizens, artists, and photographic explorers have participated, helping to share the project’s findings and transform scientific data into new forms of storytelling and awareness.