The Dr. Moses Strauss Department of Geo-Marine Sciences was founded in 2007, thanks to the generosity of Mr. Leon Charney and Mr. Ernest Strauss. The department is part of the Leon Charney School of Marine Sciences (in development since 2007) and under the Faculty of Natural Sciences. The department is a center of excellence for advanced studies offering a multidisciplinary approach to marine sciences. The research applies advanced methods of calculation and data processing also used in the natural sciences and industry, to understand processes and phenomena within the marine environment. In recent years, studies of the marine environment have become one of the focal points of international research due to its scientific, practical, and environmental importance.

There are many different research topics in this field involving interlinked disciplines and requiring a holistic approach. They include:seabed structure and the Earth’s crust beneath, the search for energy resources such as oil and gas, the dynamics of the body of water itself, global changes of water level and their connection with tectonic and climate change, the effects on the coastline (e.g., cliff collapsing), and finally – influences on human environment, nowadays and in ancient times.  As attention to environmental planning and environmentalism grows in Israel and the world, so does the need for a new generation of scientists who are trained in different disciplines but can also see the combined “big picture” when making decisions in research and practical applications. The program’s student body consists of students and professionals who are interested in specializing in Marine Environment Studies and wish to base their professional decisions on deep knowledge and a broad perspective. This new generation will lead Israeli and global research and gain employment in leading companies, ensuring that the basis for future decisions about the utilization of the sea, its resources, environment, and coasts, will be based on broad understandings of the ramifications of human activities on marine ecological environments.