About

Seventeen Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units (CESUs) across the nation provide research, technical assistance, and education to federal land management, environment, and research agencies and their partners. The CESUs facilitate collaboration among research institution and federal agency partners to address federal agency natural and cultural resource management issues at multiple scales. Research institutions provide the biological, physical, social, cultural, and engineering disciplines necessary to support informed decision making. The multidisciplinary structure of CESUs makes them well-suited to address federal agency needs for sustainability science.

The South Florida and Caribbean Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit (SFC CESU) was established in 2000 under the leadership of the Department of the Interior and has led to the partnership of nine federal agencies and 22 academic institutions and non-government organizations. Together, the SFC CESU partners support a regional approach to ecosystem science and adaptive management that emphasize natural and cultural resource understanding and protection at the landscape/seascape scale. SFC CESU members have an international reputation for excellence in the study of marine environments and their research ecosystems include the terrestrial and coastal ecosystems of South Florida (Everglades, Florida Bay, Ten Thousand Islands Area, Biscayne Bay), the marine resources including the Florida Keys from the Dry Tortugas to West Palm Beach, and the marine and terrestrial resources of Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Meet the SFC CESU Team

The SFC CESU fosters and facilitates collaborative activities among its federal and non-federal members in the areas of research, technical assistance, and educational activities to provide usable knowledge for addressing resource management issues. SFC CESU partnerships are effectively created and maintained through the sharing of resources and expertise, and member professional development is encouraged to foster current and future federal scientists, resource managers, and environmental leaders.

SFC CESU’s goal is to support and facilitate research, education, and stewardship by the partner organizations working in the South Florida and Caribbean region in the areas of natural, cultural, social, and built-environment management.