CEBIMar is a Marine Biology center for research and education, hosting several research projects and supporting a variety of curricular courses and outreach activities. The Center was founded in 1955 and has been extensively used by São Paulo University units and other universities, both public and private. International collaboration with researchers from several countries, which have chosen the CEBIMar for either short-term visits or sabbatical stays, has been fruitful for scientific exchange and innovation.

Providing well-equipped facilities just a few meters from the waterline, academics based at CEBIMar have easy and fast access to most representative coastal habitats, such as rocky shores, sandy beaches, coastal islands and mangrove forests. Main laboratory routines that demand continuous seawater supply, advanced light microscopy techniques and standard molecular analyses can be undertaken at the Center. Visitors may use the restaurant and lodging during their stays, as well as the specialized and updated collection of books, nautical charts, theses and print journals – besides numerous online publications accessed in computers – available in the library.

Located on the northern coast of São Paulo State, and near the southern end of the São Sebastião Channel, CEBIMar is surrounded by a pristine spot of Atlantic rainforest, sandy beaches and rocky shores, which constitute a no-take zone created to preserve the rich local marine fauna and flora.