ACCME 3rd Workshop on Ocean Surface Waves and Wave-Coupled Processes was held in Hangzhou during October 22 to October 24. This workshop was co-hosted by Australia-China Centre for Marine Engineering (ACCME), the First Institute of Oceanography (FIO) of Ministry of Natural Resources, and the University of Melbourne, Australia, and was sponsored by FIO and the Second Institute of Oceanography, MNR. The speakers at the opening ceremony include: Joanna Bunting, Counselor of Industry, Innovation & Science at the Australian Embassy in China, Chen Dake, Academician at the Second Institute of Oceanography, MNR, and Qiao Fangli and Professor Alexander Babanin, Co-Directors of ACCME. Over 70 renowned experts from China, Australia, the United States, Canada, Italy, Switzerland, Japan, and Korea attended the conference, including Norden E. Huang, academician of the National Academy of Engineering (NAE), Ian Young, professor of the University of Melbourne in Australia, and Luigi Cavaleri, professor and former director of the Institute of Marine Sciences (ISMAR) of the Italian National Research Council (CNR).

During the three-day workshop, experts from different countries exchanged views on the following topics: observation and experiments of ocean wave flume, ocean wave mixing and air-sea interaction, development of wave-coupled model, ocean wave theory and remote sensing observation, effects of ocean waves on global climate, and air-sea interaction in extreme weather conditions. The holding of this workshop has promoted the cooperation between China and Australia and other relevant countries in the fields of ocean and ocean waves, and has played an important role in bring the international ocean wave research to a new height and in strengthening the international influence of ACCME.

ACCME is one of the six joint research centers funded by the Ministry of Science and Technology of China and Department of Industry, Innovation and Science of Australia in 2016 to face a series of challenge together in marine science and technology, food and mining technology. ACCME has set up 5 research themes, namely, scientific experiments and remote sensing observation research, direct modelling of nonlinear waves, new ocean wave spectral modelling, the research and development of a coupled model considering wave action, and marine extreme event research, with main focus on the coupling effect of waves in the upper ocean and the lower atmosphere and its direct application in marine engineering. Qiao Fangli, research professor of FIO, MNR and Alexander Babanin, professor of the University of Melbourne in Australia, are Co-Directors of the joint research center.

Prior to this workshop, ACCME had held two sessions. ACCME 1st Workshop on Ocean Surface Waves and Wave-Coupled Processes was held in Melbourne, Australia, in December 2016 and the second in Qingdao, China, in October 2017. As a link between China and Australia in terms of marine science and technology, ACCME plays an important role in conducting substantive marine cooperation and in jointly coping with marine disasters and climate changes.