Universities advance coastal and marine science for Virginia

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Virginia Commonwealth University President Michael Rao, Ph.D., is joining with presidents of five other universities today to advance marine and coastal science that solves pressing issues by signing the Virginia Sea Grant (VASG) charter. The charter will be the first in VASG’s 30-year history and formalizes a commitment among partners toward collaboration on the challenges that face Virginia’s coasts and oceans.

Presidents from William & Mary, Old Dominion University, Virginia Tech, University of Virginia, Virginia Commonwealth University and George Mason University will sign the document. Lieutenant Governor Ralph Northam, Secretary of Education Anne Holton, and Secretary of Natural Resources Molly Ward will also participate in the event.

I am proud to join my colleagues from across the commonwealth to support and advance this critically important initiative that will help ensure that Virginia has a future that is not only strong, but sustainable in every way

“I am proud to join my colleagues from across the commonwealth to support and advance this critically important initiative that will help ensure that Virginia has a future that is not only strong, but sustainable in every way,” Rao said. “One way to build that future is to leverage the research and educational missions of our great universities, which are focused on solving society’s biggest and most challenging needs. I am also grateful for the vision of Lt. Gov. Northam and Secs. Holton and Ward. Virginia is better because of their leadership.”

Founded in 1984, VASG is a multi-university organization whose mission is to enhance the ecological, economic and social sustainability of coastal and ocean communities in Virginia and the ecosystem services they depend upon through university-based research, extension, education and communication that provide science-based information to decision-makers. It is a program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration within the U.S. Department of Commerce.

“The charter is our way to operationalize our commitment to integrating our programs and enabling connections across our institutions,” said Troy Hartley, director of VASG.

The charter signing comes on the heels of another major milestone for VASG. On Dec. 18, the Department of Commerce awarded VASG’s home institutions of William & Mary and the Virginia Institute of Marine Science with College Status, the highest status that any Sea Grant program can achieve. These formalized arrangements are essential to solving the issues Virginia’s coasts and oceans face today, said Hartley.

“It’s important to break down boundaries and to cross those boundaries, whether they are institutional, operational, or functional; extension, research, or communication; social science or natural science,” Hartley said. “That’s where innovation and problem-solving comes from.”

 

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