MISSION STATEMENT

Goal
The Gulf of Maine Lobster Foundation (GOMLF) is a partnership among fishermen, scientists and other industry stakeholders who cooperate to gather scientific information on American lobster and the Gulf of Maine ecosystem in order to improve management decisions, ensure healthy fisheries and sustainable resources.

Short-Term Objectives

  • Secure operational funding to hire staff and obtain office space and equipment
  • Create a business plan which would include a long-term funding strategy to sustain the GOMLF into the future.
  • Act as a clearinghouse of information on current and planned collaborative research efforts in the Gulf of Maine.
  • Organize a series of regional outreach meetings to gain community input on issues important to the region. Topics may include 1) reviewing the status of collaborative research in the Gulf of Maine, 2) prioritizing regional research needs for American lobster, 3) identifying data and information gaps within and among various jurisdictions in the Gulf of Maine and 4) developing criteria for conducting collaborative research projects.
  • Design cooperative research projects aimed at generating long-term data sets on priority issues identified in the workshops.

Long-Term Objectives
  • Implement cooperative research projects aimed at generating long-term data sets on priority issues identified in the workshops.
  • Provide funding for industry-driven collaborative research projects which address priority issues identified in the workshops.
  • Make data widely available by establishing an Atlantic Coastal Cooperative Statistics Program (ACCSP) compliant data management system to house GOMLF project data, and whenever possible, consolidate disparate lobster data sets which are otherwise unavailable to fishermen and scientists.
  • Promote the open exchange of information and ideas about local collaborative research initiatives by making data and information available to a broad audience through a website and hosting events to bring people together to continue an open dialogue.
  • Develop programs and materials to educate the fishing industry on issues affecting the Gulf of Maine and the lobster fishery.
  • Create educational programs and materials which the industry can take into local communities to educate children and the public about issues affecting the Gulf of Maine and the lobster fishery.

© 2008  Gulf of Maine Lobster Foundation