North Carolina National Estuarine Research Reserve: Focus for 2007-2011
Vision:
Healthy estuaries and coastal watersheds where ecological communities thrive and the human community benefits in North Carolina.
Mission:
To promote informed management and stewardship of North Carolina’s estuarine and coastal habitats through research, education, and example.
Goals:
- Humans understand the natural systems, their connections to them, and the benefits derived from them.
- Applicable research informs coastal policy.
- NCNERR habitats and land use of associated watersheds are characterized and connections understood.
- Habitat is protected and the public has directed access to NCNERR components.
- NCNERR operations, infrastructure, and stature are improved.
The vision, mission, and goals were developed by NCNERR staff through strategic planning and logic model tools with the assistance of the NOAA Coastal Services Center. The goals integrate NCNERR programs, obscuring the lines between education, research, and stewardship.
Guiding Principles:
- Strong partnerships between the NCNERR, federal and state agencies, universities, other local partners, and the Carolina Estuarine Reserve Foundation are critical to the success of the NCNERR.
- The NCNERR integrates science, education, and stewardship on relevant topics to maximize the benefits to coastal management.
- The NCNERR engages local communities and citizens to improve stewardship of coastal areas.
- Reserve programs capitalize on the physical setting of the Reserve to inspire questions, learning, and conscious decision-making.
- The management and programs of the Reserve demonstrate good environmental practices.
The guiding principles detail how the NCNERR conducts its business, providing a filter through which programs are developed, implemented, and evaluated. These principles apply to all programs and sites.