Partnerships
The Gulf of Mexico Alliance is a partnership of the states of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas, with the goal of significantly increasing regional collaboration to enhance the environmental and economic health of the Gulf of Mexico.
State Partners
Leadership from the five Gulf States forms the foundation of the Alliance and each of the Gulf States has committed time and resources to its successful implementation. Through a collaborative approach, the priority issues of the Gulf are being addressed with scientific and technical experts and resource managers who have the knowledge base and experience. In order to effectively address the priorities of the Gulf region, each of the States provides regional coordination for a particular issue:
- Florida leads the Water Quality for Healthy Beaches and Seafood team;
- Alabama leads the Environmental Education team;
- Mississippi leads the Reducing Nutrient Impacts to Coastal Ecosystems team;
- Louisiana leads the Habitat Conservation and Restoration team;
- Texas leads the Ecosystems Integration and Assessment team; and
- Mississippi and Louisiana co-lead the Coastal Community Resilience team.
Federal Partners
The success of the Alliance is based not only on the dedication of the five Gulf States, but also on leadership from federal partners. Thirteen federal agencies committed to supporting the Alliance have come together as a federal workgroup under the leadership of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the U.S. Department of Interior (DOI). The goals of the federal work group are to support the Gulf States and to coordinate an integrated federal response to priority regional issues identified by the Alliance. The federal workgroup brings diverse expertise and established experience. By coordinating and integrating these capabilities, the impact of federal resources is fully maximized.
Other Partners
In addition to Gulf States and the federal workgroup, the Alliance relies heavily on non-governmental partners, such as academic organizations, non-profit organizations, and businesses. Whether piloting new programs, or implementing full-scale efforts, these partners provide the talent and resources to implement on-the-ground projects. These partners have aligned their goals to those of the Alliance in order to create tangible results, thereby realizing the potential for change associated with a grand-scale collaborative effort such as the Gulf of Mexico Alliance.
In addition, the Gulf of Mexico Alliance recognizes that we are not the only residents of this important ecosystem. Our neighboring countries also contribute to, experience the effects of, and reap the benefits of the Gulf of Mexico. To be truly successful in improving the ecological health of this region, a collaborative effort is necessary with other partners of the Gulf, including Mexico. To that end, the Gulf of Mexico Alliance supports the creation of a parallel Mexican Gulf of Mexico Alliance and strongly encourages the continued pursuit of collaboration among countries in the region.
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