This course is developed within the framework of the HORIZON Europe project GuardIAS, “Guarding European Waters from Invasive Alien Species (IAS)”. GuardIAS focuses on aquatic invasive alien species, aiming to improve the detection and prevent the spread of invasive alien species in both marine and freshwater habitats using a range of novel methods. Moreover, the project works also to increase the knowledge transfer between the scientific community and the society. For this purpose, GuardIAS has dedicated objectives and tasks directed to education and training, public engagement and raising awareness.