OCEAN SPRINGS, Miss. – The Gulf of Mexico Alliance is pleased to share several new projects as part of its ongoing Gulf Star Program. This year’s projects focus on supporting coastal resilience, underrepresented and underserved communities, citizen science water and marine debris monitoring, living shorelines, wildlife conservation and regional data sharing.
The Gulf Star Program is a unique public-private partnership that leverages contributions from agencies, businesses, and non-profits without requiring match funds from grant recipients.
Building on nearly two decades of experience working in the Gulf region, the Alliance recognizes that this model increases the diversity of grant recipients, as match requirements are often a barrier for communities and small organizations.
Gulf Star provides funding for projects that support healthy beaches, clean waters, productive ecosystems and thriving coastal communities in the Gulf of Mexico region. In total, nearly 50 projects have been funded through the Gulf Star Program since 2016.
The shared impacts from these Gulf Star projects are made possible by the following Gulf Star partners: BHP, Shell, Freeport McMoRan, Hess, Chevron, Clean Gulf Associates, Equinor, Oxy, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the five Gulf states.
“We are proud to work with the Gulf of Mexico Alliance as a long-standing partner in their Gulf Star program and other collaborative efforts,” said Ruth Perry, Marine Science and Regulatory Policy Specialist with Shell.
Laura Bowie, executive director for the Gulf of Mexico Alliance, said, “Our incredible success is built on the strength of GOMA’s collaborative formula and the shared vision of our Gulf Star partners. I am incredibly proud of the impact these projects are having on Gulf ecosystems and economies.”
All projects in the Gulf Star Program accomplish actions identified by the Alliance’s Priority Issue Teams and Cross-Team Initiatives in the Governors’ Action Plan for Healthy and Resilient Coasts. Led by the five Gulf states, these Teams focus on activities that benefit from a regional, collaborative approach to improve the environmental and economic health of the Gulf.
Learn more about the Gulf Star Program and view the 2020 annual report at https://gulfofmexicoalliance.org/gulfstar. To become a Gulf Star partner contact Becky Ginn at becky.ginn@gomxa.org.
About the Gulf of Mexico Alliance
The Gulf of Mexico Alliance is a not-for-profit organization focused on enhancing the environmental and economic health of the Gulf of Mexico through increased regional collaboration. Led by the five Gulf states, our network includes over 150 participating organizations from state and Federal agencies, Tribal governments, communities, academia, non-governmental organizations and industry. Priority issues addressed by the Alliance include coastal community resilience, data and monitoring, education, habitat, water resources wildlife and fisheries and marine debris. Learn more at www.gulfofmexicoalliance.org.
