The German Alfred Wegener Institute Helmholtz Centre for Polar and Marine Research (AWI) is one of the world’s leading polar research organizations, with research being carried out in the Arctic and Antarctic as well as in the high and mid latitude oceans. It contributes to the international research on climate, marine and coastal issues. It is a member of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centres. In the AWI, the Young Investigator Group ARJEL-Arctic Jellies, led by C. Havermans, focuses on the diversity and role of gelatinous zooplankton (jellyfish) in polar regions. It uses state-of-the-art methods such as optical surveys, environmental DNA and modelling to characterize biodiversity patterns and study climate change-driven range shifts in the rapidly changing ocean.
