MINA admitted to Hawai’i-Pacific Islands CESU
Mariana Islands Nature Alliance announced that it has been admitted as a partner institution to the Hawai’i-Pacific Islands Cooperative Ecosystems Studies Unit with University of Hawaii as its host effective April 5, 2024.
The CESU is a mechanism that assists in the transfer of federal funds to member organizations through cooperative agreements. These funds are used to work on collaborative research, training, service, and outreach projects with partner organizations. HPI-CESU (link: https://hilo.hawaii.edu/hpicesu/) is part of the national network of Cooperative Studies Units (CESU) (http://www.cesu.psu.edu/), which links federal land-management agencies with universities, museums and other nongovernmental organizations that can provide research, training and technical expertise in stewarding natural and cultural resources.
The HPI-CESU program currently works with 12 federal and 19 non-federal members, including universities and local organizations. HPI-CESU is hosted by the University of Hawaii Office of the Vice President of Research and Innovation, but its members can be found throughout the Pacific in Guam, American Samoa, California and Hawaiʻi and now, with MINA’s admission, in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.
MINA board chair Frank Eliptico stressed the value of this partnership, “The entry into the Hawai’i-Pacific CESU will open many doors for funding that will strengthen MINA’s mission to empower our communities for conservation. The work we do today impacts the natural and cultural environment that we leave for future generations, and this partnership will enhance those efforts.”
MINA executive director Roberta Guerrero stated that, “MINA would like to take this opportunity to thank Sharon Ziegler-Chong, director of the HPI-CESU who guided MINA through the application process, and to Thomas E. Fish, Ph.D., National Coordinator, Cooperative Ecosystem Studies Units Network for advancing and approval of this partnership.”
For more information about MINA and its programs, email minaoutreach@gmail.com, follow them on Instagram @minaoutreach, Facebook /MINAPACIFIC, and visit their website at www.minapacific.org. (PR)
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