The Northeast Florida Coastal Research & Education Corridor
The partnership
among the following partners--the Guana Tolomato Matanzas National
Estuarine Research Reserve (GTM-NERR), the National Park Service (NPS)and North
Florida Land Trust (NFTL) collaborate to conduct research of vital importance
to our region. The Reserve is one of 29 in the country, a result of a
partnership between the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the
Florida
The State with the Greatest Number of Miles of Coastline
For twelve years, this partnership has provided unparalleled access to
research and educational opportunities for UNF faculty, undergraduates, and
graduate students to benefit the citizens of the state that has the greatest
number of miles of coastline. The availability of nearby coastal estuarine
conservation areas that are supported by partner staff and facilities creates
incredible opportunities for multi-disciplinary research and scholarship,
geared toward improving the ecology of our coast.
Everyone in the Region should Visit!
This is a place the residents of northeast Florida should
visit—and bring their out of town friends when they visit. The 21,000-square
foot Visitor Center includes interpretive exhibits, aquariums, classrooms,
teaching and working laboratories, an auditorium and an outdoor amphitheater
overlooking the Guana River Aquatic Preserve. The Reserve offers a stunning,
pristine beach access point south of Mickler’s Landing in Ponte Vedra Beach. The
GTM Research Reserve has over 200,000 visitors per year from all over the
world. It is a fabulous community resource as a beautiful, interconnected
ecosystem from the ocean to the forests. Education staff offer programming for
all ages on the importance of the estuary; summer camps run for kids seven and
older.
Faculty Research
Over the past several years, this collaboration has provided more than 40
important publications by UNF faculty as a result of this partnership. It
allows for long-term ecological research, investigations that track ecological
changes over many years and requires continuous access and dependable on-site
research infrastructure. It is truly multidisciplinary: faculty in biology,
chemistry, engineering, archaeology, history, and art and design, among others,
have been involved in projects that advance knowledge of coastal communities
and ecological resilience from both contemporary and historical perspectives.
One of the most important projects is measuring the impact of climate change on
mangrove estuaries
Student Research
The partnership features an Environmental Education Center that includes
classrooms, seminar spaces, and wet labs used to teach UNF students. Both
undergraduate and graduate students benefit from opportunities to work on
projects sponsored by federal and state agencies.