Program Participants

Fundación La Salle de Ciencias Naturales, Estación de Investigaciones Marinas de Margarita, Isla de Margarita, Venezuela

Fundación La Salle de Ciencias Naturales is a non-profit organization dedicated to educate technicians, develop scientific research related with the social and natural sciences and to provide communities with the necessary tools for sustainable development. EDIMAR (Estación de Investigaciones Marinas de Margarita, Venezuela) was established in 1958 for fisheries research and resource evaluation, but soon it expanded to explore all branches of oceanography: physical, chemical, geological and biological. EDIMAR now draws on the expertise of a group of researchers specialized in the different branches of oceanography, and has several assets, such as the R/V Hermano. Ginés, used in oceanographic research, and the Paraguachoa, a fisheries vessel used by the fisheries students in their training.

Laboratorio de Sensores Remotos/Universidad Simón Bolívar

The Remote Sensing and Geospatial Analysis Laboratory (LSR) is part of the Biological Sciences Division of the University Simón Bolívar in Caracas, Venezuela, and is part of the network of laboratories of the Marine Biodiversity Center. It aims to study ecological and oceanographic processes using remote sensing, which includes automated instrumentation, satellite images, etc. It also designs and implements geospatial models to analyze oceanographic features beyond local scales. The results of this research provide explanations or solutions to specific problems affecting the private or public sector and promote the understanding and conservation of the aquatic environment.

Instituto Venezolano de Investigaciones Científicas (IVIC)

The Venezuelan Institute for Scientific Research (IVIC), located in Caracas, Venezuela, is one of the largest research centers in the country, specializing in many different disciplines including biology, chemistry, medicine, physics, mathematics, food technology and socio-anthropology.Their objective is to carry out high quality scientific research in those areas which are defined as priority for Venezuela; their mission also includes capacity building. They have a high quality research infrastructure which includes several well equipped laboratories and library resources.

Universidad de Oriente, Núcleo Sucre and Nueva Esparta, Cumana and Margarita, Venezuela

Two of the Universidad de Oriente’s branches, located in Cumana (Núcleo Sucre, B. Marin) and Margarita Island (Núcleo Nueva Esparta, L. Troccoli), Venezuela, are currently participating in the CARIACO project. Their research focuses on marine and freshwater ecosystems, specializing in marine biology, fisheries, phytoplankton taxonomy and oceanography. Through their projects they provide the public and private sector information necessary to elaborate optimal policies for the sustainable development of littoral areas. Their research also focuses on the recovery of damaged marine environments due to overexploitation and misuse.

University of South Florida, Institute for Marine Remote Sensing and Oceanic Nutrient Laboratory, FL

The Institute for Marine Remote Sensing (IMaRS) is part of the College of Marine Science, University of South Florida, St. Petersburg, Florida. Their research activities focus on the analysis of digital data obtained by satellite and airborne sensors, and on the development of applications of these data at local, regional, and global scales. The main objective is to provide a better understanding of the world oceans on a large spatial and temporal scale. They specialize in coastal processes of highly variable regions like the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea and Cuba using instruments such as AVHRR, CZCS, SeaWiFS, MODIS, Landsat and VIIRS.

The Oceanic Nutrient Laboratory is part of the College of Marine Science, University of South Florida, in St. Petersburg, Florida. They specialize in nutrient analysis in the upper portion of the ocean, focusing on nitrate, nitrite, and ammonia, and pursuing the question whether ammonia in the surface ocean can, in effect, serve as a water mass tracer. The Oceanic Nutrient Laboratory is a fully equipped chemistry laboratory for standard nutrient analyses using ASTORIA-PACIFIC 305D Analyzer (4 channels)-or Technicon-Autoanalyzer-II segmented-flow (5 channels) analyzers.

University of South Carolina, Department of Geological Sciences, Columbia, SC

The Department of Geological Sciences at the University of South Carolina is composed of a group of highly regarded research scientists and outstanding programs that comprise a diverse range of related disciplines. Among these are: Environmental Geosciences, Geochemistry, Geophysics, Global Climate Change, Hydrocarbon exploration, Marine Sciences, Oceanography, Petrology, Satellite Geodesy, Sedimentology, Seismology, Structural Geology and Tectonics. They focus on three primary research areas: Evolution of Orogenic Systems, Environmental Geosciences, and Global Climate Change. The Department utilizes the latest hardware and software to work in these disciplines.

State University of New York, Marine Sciences Research Center, Stony Brook, NY

The Marine Sciences Research Center (MSRC) is the State University of New York’s center for marine and atmospheric research, education, and public service. The Center focuses on coastal oceanographic processes and atmospheric sciences in a natural and academic setting that offers abundant opportunities for conducting field work and solving real problems in both local and distant locations. The primary focus of the MSRC faculty and students is on fundamental research designed to increase understanding of the processes that characterize the coastal ocean and the atmosphere. The Marine Sciences Research Center is also committed in applying their research to solve problems that result from society’s uses and misuses of the environment.

Other CARIACO Collaborating Institutions

• Arizona State University, USA
• Ben-Gurion University, Israel
• Bigelow Labs, USA
• BIOS, Bermuda
• Boston University, USA
• Cal Tech, USA
• College of Charleston, USA
• Colorado College, USA
• CPDI/Fundación Instituto de Ingeniería, Venezuela
• CSIR Cape Town, South Africa
• Dalhousie University, Canada
• Ekerd College, USA
• ETH Zurich, Zwitzerland
• GEOMAR, Kiel, Germany
• INIDEP, Argentina
• Inst. Oceanográfico-Univ. de Sao Paulo, Brazil
• Institut fur Ostseeforschung, Germany
• Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission
• Kaiserslautern Tech. Univ., Germany
• Lamont DEO, Columbia, USA
• Lawrence Livermore National Lab, USA
• Louisiana University Lafayette, USA
• Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
• Marine Hydrophysical Institute, Ukraine
• MBARI, USA
• Mount Allison University, USA
• Nature Conservancy, USA
• NC State, USA
• NOAA GFDL, USA
• Northeastern University, USA
• Old Dominion University, USA
• Oregon State University, USA
• Princeton Univ., USA
• Skidaway Institute of Oceanography, USA
• Stockholm University, Sweden
• Univ. British Columbia, Canada
• UC Davis, USA
• UC Riverside, USA
• UC Santa Cruz, USA
• Univ. of Georgia, USA
• Univ. Granada, Spain
• Univ. Hawaii, USA
• Univ. Lille, France
• Univ. Lisboa, Portugal
• Univ. Massachussets, Dartmouth, USA
• Univ. Minnesota Duluth, USA
• Univ. of Carabobo, Venezuela
• Univ. of Concepcion, Chile
• Univ. of Rhode Island, USA
• Univ. of Zulia, Venezuela
• Univ. Queensland, Australia
• Univ. Rochester, USA
• Univ. Southampton, UK
• Univ. Southern Denmark, Denmark
• Univ. Washington, USA
• Universidad Central de Venezuela, Venezuela
• Universität Potsdam, Germany
• University MD College Park, USA
• University of California, USA
• University of Georgia, USA
• University of Louisiana, Lafayette, USA
• University of Miami, RSMAS, USA
• Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, USA