Numerical ocean models are widely applied for climate and environmental prediction and research, either in ocean-only mode, or incorporated into coupled climate and earth system models. Evaluation, analysis and improvement of models are ongoing tasks of model developers and researchers. Drawing from over 20 years of experience, I will present several recent examples of 1) high-resolution models developed for the global ocean and oceans/seas around Canada; 2) analysis of model solutions and sensitivity simulations to understand the forcing mechanisms and predictability of ocean variability; and 3) application of ocean forecasting to address fishery issues of important societal and economic interests. Finally, I will introduce the objectives of the “Ocean Modelling and Analysis” course that I will jointly teach with Professors Wenyu Huang and Xiaomeng Huang in spring 2018.