NOAA and The Ocean Foundation have joined forces to further research, conservation and oceans on a global level, thanks to a memorandum of agreement inked in early December, it was announced Jan. 5.
Learning more about climate change and ocean acidification’s impact on oceans and coasts, researching the National Estuarine Research Reserve System and developing sustainable U.S. marine aquaculture are among the initiatives that both sides intend to prioritize under the new agreement.
The new partnership between NOAA and the foundation is the latest in a series of science and technology team ups developed in the last year by NOAA, all in support of the Presidential Memorandum on Ocean Mapping of the U.S. Exclusive Economic Zone and Shoreline and Near Shore of Alaska and the goals unveiled at White House Summit on Partnerships in Ocean Science and Technology in 2019, according to NOAA.
“We know that a healthy ocean is the ‘life-support system’ for human wellbeing, planetary health and economic prosperity,” said foundation president Mark J. Spalding. “Our partnership with NOAA will allow both partners to continue our long-established international scientific relationships and research collaborations, including capacity building, that are the foundation for more formal international agreements — something we call science diplomacy — and build equitable bridges between communities, societies, and nations.”