Mission

The Ocean River Institute fosters greater personal involvement and relationships in conservation, resource monitoring and protecting ecosystems. We build and actively manage relationships with scientists, community/user groups, and environmental interest group to foster greater communities both social and ecological to protect natural resources and conserve wildlife. Our mission is to protect our ecological commons by advancing ecosystem-based citizen-informed management through environmental subsidiarity.

Programs

1. Ecosystem-based Ocean Management – The Ocean River Institute works with all levels of government from individuals and community groups, educational associations, to state and federal agencies to engage, educate, and broaden communication. ORI began in 2007 building a constituency and organizational network supportive of the "Mass Ocean Bill." On May 28,2008, the Massachusetts Ocean Bill was signed into law. ORI assists by managing communication networks, hosting educational forums, advancing scientific research, and by promoting the work of people closest to the ocean resource.

2. River Science – The Ocean River Institute networks and advances the river work of scientists. ORI implements better communications and fosters greater personal involvement, relationship and education with rivers through collaborations with place-based citizen monitoring groups, river science efforts including the Rushing River Institute, the River Management Society, and larger nonprofit and agency organizations.

3. Environmental Justice - The Ocean River Institutes starts with groups closest to the natural resource, to assist with their needs and goals. The principles of environmental subsidiarity are respect for those closest to the resource, to assist only where needed, understanding the best made management plans will only succeed when supported by local groups. Credit goes to the local, while responsibility including competency training is held by all. For example, in 2007 ORI assisted Alternatives for Community and Environment (ACE) youth organizers in Boston in their Diesel DeTox campaign for cleaner air in their neighborhoods.

4. Alaska – The Ocean River Institute builds on the legacy of supportive relationships between Massachusetts citizens and Alaska. ORI educates people distant from Alaska of environmental and climatic disruption effects and offers opportunities to help. ORI advances by environmental subsidiarity the work of educators, citizen-monitors, researchers, managers and watershed groups in Alaska including support of the annual Alaska Oceans Festival in Anchorage. Informed by ORI Alaskan individuals and groups are assisting distant groups and projects, for example saving from a mega-yacht marina a marine area encompassing Beef Island in the British Virgin Islands.