Mote and University of Guam forge new partnership to advance ocean research
Wednesday, Aug. 3, Mote Marine Laboratory and the University of Guam Marine Laboratory forged a new partnership, which will benefit scientists, students and faculty while enhancing collaboration in marine research and science education.
Leaders of the two institutions, Mote President and CEO Dr. Michael P. Crosby and UOG President Dr. Robert Underwood, celebrated the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) at UOG’s campus in the heart of Mangilao on the island of Guam. The MOU lays the foundation for collaborations in marine research and education serving the common missions and goals of both institutions.
"Mote is pleased to enter into a partnership with the University of Guam, which will facilitate advancements in marine science and strengthen the capabilities of conducting world-class marine research while enhancing the knowledge and broadening the experiences of the next-generation of scientists for both of our institutions,” Crosby said.
Under this agreement, Mote and UOG will explore exciting opportunities to partner in teaching, introduce more undergraduate students to the cutting-edge coral reef science at Mote’s research facility on Summerland Key and share research and education facilities and infrastructure.
“Coral reefs worldwide are in peril as they face threats such as climate change and ocean acidification,” said Dr. David Vaughan, Manager of Mote’s Coral Restoration Program. “With this partnership, Mote and UOG scientists will be able to collaborate, put our heads together, and truly enhance research investigating resilience in coral reef organisms to ocean acidification, coral reef restoration, coral reef ecology and studying other threats faced by corals today.”
Mote, an independent nonprofit marine science institution established in 1955, has five campuses stretching from its home base in Sarasota, Florida, to its research facility on Summerland Key. There, Mote scientists study the grand challenges facing corals reefs — including climate change and ocean acidification — and they have raised and planted thousands of coral fragments onto Florida’s depleted reefs. The Keys facility also serves as a base of operations for hundreds of other researchers from over 60 different institutions around the world and numerous students.
Currently, a new state-of-the-art research facility is being constructed on Mote’s existing property on Summerland Key that will be designed to enhance the organization’s scientific and educational infrastructure, allowing it to expand research programs focused on restoring damaged reefs and on finding new ways to deal with the challenges they are facing today. This new building will enhance the partnership between Mote and UOG.
The UOG was founded in 1952 as a two-year teacher-training school known as the Territorial College of Guam. In 1960, the college moved to the present campus in the village of Mangilao on the island of Guam as a four-year land-grant institution. It is dedicated to the search for and dissemination of knowledge, wisdom and truth and its mission is to enlighten, to discover and to serve.
The new MOU is a framework that will allow institution leaders, scientists and faculty to develop more specific plans for collaboration, with attention to:
- Collaboration in joint grant proposals and research activities
- Seeking sponsorship from various local, national and international funding sources in support of collaborative activities
- Exchange of research faculty, research and students
- Access of faculty and students to share and utilize each parties’ respective research infrastructure based on availability of space and funding
- Participation in research workshops and academic meetings
- Providing strategic review, advice and recommendations for institutional-level science and research initiatives (i.e., National Science Foundations’ and Science and Technology Centers).
“Partnering with a prominent institution like Mote Marine Laboratory is an amazing opportunity to continue building our research network,” said Dr. Robert Underwood, UOG President.
The University has recently been collaborating with the Mote through the UOG Experimental Program to Stimulate Competitive Research project, for which Mote Marine Laboratory President and CEO Dr. Michael Crosby has served as an External Advisory Board member.
“This MOU helps the University and projects like EPSCoR to continue to leverage our resources and seek funding for future collaborations,” said Dr. Terry Donaldson, UOG Marine Laboratory Director and Guam EPSCoR Principal Investigator. “This means greater opportunities for local researchers, faculty, and students.”