Sectorial Library of the Graduate Program in Biological Oceanography

       At the request of the Oceanography Department of FURG, in 1991 a sectorial library was set with a collection provided by the Program of Support to Development, Science and Technology (PADCT). According to Prof. Clarisse Odebrecht, coordinator of the project, it was divided into two subprojects: one of them was for the implementation of the PhD course in Biological Oceanography (supported by CAPES) and the other was a research project (supported by CNPq). In the CAPES subproject, for necessary support to the PhD course in Biological Oceanography, the creation of a library was also contemplated, with the acquisition of materials including from shelves and computers to scientific periodicals and books.

       Thus, on May 10, 1992, the Sectorial Library of the Graduate Program in Biological Oceanography was inaugurated. Through an agreement with the Secretariat of the Inter-ministerial Commission for Sea Resources (SECIRM), signed in 1997, the subscription of several journal titles was guaranteed, which around 2001 started to be accessed electronically through the CAPES Periodical Portal. New titles and materials in other formats (CDs, DVDs, etc.) were also added to the initial collection, resulting in a rich and very important collection representing a reference center in the area of Marine Sciences in southern Brazil.

         Currently, as the Institute of Oceanography maintains other Graduate programs besides the one in Biological Oceanography (i.e., courses in the areas of Chemical, Physical and Geological Oceanography, and also Coastal Management) the library is referred only as "Sectorial Library of the Graduate Programs in Oceanography". In a historic decision, on 11/23/2015, with the approval of the Head of the Institute of Oceanography, Dr. José H. Muelbert, the Sectorial Library has started to expand its target public within the University. Until then, the Library, which works in cooperation with the Institute of Oceanography (IO/FURG), had its attendance restricted to the graduate students of the University, and only these could borrow books. The exception was for Oceanology undergraduate students, which could borrow books authorized by an IO professor - via a signed letter delivered to the library - who would be responsible for the books. Since 2015, the Library´s collection has been available for all undergraduate students in the university, without requirements of professors approval. Therefore, the Library expands and democratizes the use of its collection, but it continues to focus on specific topics in Oceanography.