University of Georgia Marine Institute
The University of Georgia Marine Institute (UGAMI) is a nearshore ecological and geological research institute located on Sapelo Island off the coast of Georgia in the United States. This island lies between the Atlantic Ocean and a pristine salt marsh. A ferry takes passengers from Meridian (between Darien and Crescent) to Sapelo Island. The institute is 280 miles southeast of the University of Georgia main campus in Athens. The Island has fewer than 100 full-time residents.
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Education
The Institute was created in 1953 as the Marine Biological Laboratory and led to the creation of the University of Georgia (UGA) Institute of Ecology in 1961 and the UGA School of Marine Programs in 1991. The Marine Institute is currently a part of the Marine Sciences department within UGA's Franklin College of Arts and Sciences. The Marine Institute is a non-degree granting unit of the UGA school of Marine Programs.[1] Students must had completed formal classroom education at any accredited college or university before they wish to pursue their degree requirement research for ecological and geological research.
Programs
UGAMI has three different programs.
Georgia Coastal Ecosystems-Long-Term Ecological Research Program
The Georgia Coastal Ecosystems-Long-Term Ecological Research Program (GCE LTER) site was established by the National Science Foundation in 2000. The Georgia coast will experience many changes in the coming decades because of sea level rise, climate change, and human modification. GCE LTER is studying an estuary habitat with hopes of learning the mechanisms behind the variation in the ecosystem now in order to predict future changes in from the a fore mentioned factors.[2]
Sapelo Island Microbial Observatory
The Sapelo Island Microbial Observatory (SIMO) was established by the National Science Foundation in October 2000. SIMO is a location for studying estuaries through the diverse prokaryotes that live in these locations where fresh and salt water meet. Thee researchers at this location seek to discover why different prokaryotes can be found at different time in the Sapelo Island Salt Marshes and what impact these changes in diversity might play on biogeochemical function in these unique areas.[3]
Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve
The 6,100 acres of the Sapelo Island National Estuarine Research Reserve (SINERR) first became a research reserve in 1976. This reserve is on the west coast of Sapelo Island. The research done at this site is centered on the ecosystems present naturally in the reserve and the outreach programs of the organization focus on the cultural as well as the historical resources of Sapelo Island and the greater Altamaha River estuary.[4]
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