Abstract
An international symposium on decadal changes in the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) and North Atlantic Fisheries Organization (NAFO) regions of the North Atlantic from 2001 to 2009, jointly sponsored by ICES and NAFO, took place in Santander, Spain, from 10 to 12 May 2011. During the period covered by the symposium, the upper ocean warmed, particularly in temperate and Arctic-boreal regions, and there were major biogeographic shifts and changes in the phenology of the biota that appear to be related to the physical changes.