Our Mission
The ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ blue economy is a cornerstone for ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥n communities, underscoring the importance of balanced stewardship and sustainable use of marine resources. Through collaborative partnerships, ABEC is focused on sustainability and amplifying community benefits. We seek to engage with different sectors in the blue economy to serve and develop opportunities and value adding activities.
Our Goals & Objectives
- Serve as a platform to connect existing resources in ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ across the blue economy sectors. These resources will range from talent, technology, best practices, and research, to funding and equipment. Our primary goal of creating this platform is to connect industry challenges to the solutions that are available and to support those that require more development.
- Generate new funding for the State. We will both lead and support proposal development for teams across ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ in academia, commercial industries, non-profits, NGOs, ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ Native stakeholders, and state and federal agencies to better position the State to receive competitive funding to support our blue economy. This funding will lead to more revenue and jobs available in the blue economy.
- Tell the story of our blue communities. We will provide a place for every ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥n to learn more about the blue economy across the State. As part of this work, we will include ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ Native perspectives on water use, build up data around the blue economy and make it available to ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ns, and share case studies around current initiatives in the blue economy. We hope that students, faculty members, policy leaders, maritime workers, large industry players, and every community member will visit ABEC physically and virtually to inform projects and decisions to build a better blue economy.
Who We Are
The ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ Blue Economy Center (ABEC) was established in 2019 to serve as a platform to connect ÀÖ»¢Ö±²¥ns to relevant resources, expertise, and best practices both across and outside of the state in the myriad of Blue Economy sectors.