Director's Message

Dear Friends and Colleagues:

I have been thinking a lot lately about climate change and the environment and the large part the MBL has to play in this critical issue for our society. This issue has been even more on my mind since my participation in the United Nations Climate Conference in Copenhagen, known as COP15, in December.

It was my privilege to attend COP15 with my colleagues from the Woods Hole Consortium. We went to achieve two goals:

* To help raise the world’s awareness of the importance of oceans and biodiversity in the climate issue and

* To help spread the word about the important research the consortium is doing on the interconnectedness of land, sea, ice, and air when it comes to understanding our changing climate.

It was inspiring to be among so many people who are so concerned about this issue and to help promote the Consortium’s and the MBL’s good work in this arena.

MBL science has a big role to play in helping policymakers like those who gathered in Copenhagen make informed decisions about stewarding the environment. MBL Ecosystems Center scientists have been working on this since the center’s 1975 inception. Biodiversity is a hallmark of the MBL’s Encyclopedia of Life project and so I was delighted to speak to both issues as a panelist at Ocean’s Day, a COP15 event keynoted by Prince Albert II of Monaco. Watch the video here of Ocean's Day here.

Here in Woods Hole, we are doing our part to walk our environmental talk. For example, under the supervision of Rich Cutler, we have recycled 98 percent of the materials we removed during the Loeb Laboratory renovation and the building has been designed for Silver LEED certification, the nationally accepted benchmark for the design, construction and operation of high-performance green buildings. We are also encouraging paper conservation and the use of recycled paper, and restricting unnecessary travel whenever possible.

This issue of LabNotes highlights the Woods Hole Consortium’s involvement in COP15, provides an update on the Loeb renovation, and a number of other updates on the Laboratory’s continued forward movement, not only in its commitment to the environment, but also in its commitment to being a leader in biology.

Spring will be here soon, followed quickly by the ribbon-cutting ceremony for the renovated Loeb Laboratory, a project that has created more than 250 local and regional construction jobs, while keeping the MBL at the cutting edge of discovery education. We will send you the ribbon-cutting date as soon as it is final and I look forward to seeing you there, if not sooner.

With all best wishes,

Gary Borisy
MBL Director and CEO