The Great Lakes Research Consortium is an organization of eighteen colleges and universities in New York, with nine affiliate campuses in Ontario, dedicated to collaborative research and education on the Great lakes. We have nearly 400 member faculty, who are conducting research in every facet of Great Lakes science.

Our mission

To improve the understanding of the Great Lakes ecosystem, including the physical , biological, and chemical processes that shape it, as well as the social and political forces that affect human impact on the lakes and their associated economic resources. We accomplish this through research, instruction, and public service.

Research task groups, formed to study particular aspects of Great Lakes ecology, for example the source and fate of toxic contaminants, the physical and biological dynamics of large lake environments, and the social and political factors of environmental degradation.

Seminar series, from 15 to 35 annually, covering a wide range of topics in chemistry and the biological and social sciences. Each member and affiliate campus is offered a seminar in each of the two semesters. Some of this year’s presentations dealt with invasive species, fish mortality, global warming, river ice processes, the toxic effect of pharmaceuticals, and the transport of contaminants by air, bird, fish or other sea life. We estimate that since 1986 over 6,000 students, faculty and the general public have attended one of these seminars.

Research planning workshops bring potential collaborators together to develop research agendas and plan for future collaborative work. Over the years, the GLRC has sponsored nearly thirty of these workshops. The most recent was the Great Lakes Restoration Workshop (co-sponsored by the Center for Environmental Information, New York Sea Grant, and Congressman James Walsh), held March 18, 2005 at SUNY ESF, in order to discover what research was needed to support New York’s participation in Great Lakes Restoration efforts. The research priority categories were aligned with those prepared for the Great Lakes Regional Collaborative and the report was made available to New York Great Lakes leaders and government officials.

GLRC Small Grants and the New York Great Lakes Protection Fund Small Grants (NYGLPF). Some of these programs funds are intended to be used as seed money for multi-campus innovative research. The grants projects awarded under this program have gone on to attract over $10 million dollars in additional support for Consortium scientists..

In addition to the Consortium's primary objective of developing research teams for addressing Great Lakes problems, the Consortium:

• Hosts an Annual Conference which brings together over 130 faculty and students to share ideas and research results. The conference gives graduate and undergraduate students an opportunity to present their work to an audience of their peers and faculty. Awards, sponsored by New York Sea Grant, are given for best student presentations in several oral categories and a poster session.
• Disseminates news about and for our member institutions in our newsletter, the GLRC Report, and current research being conducted around the Great Lakes basin, in the Great Lakes Research Review. (in collaboration with New York Sea Grant and the University at Buffalo Great Lakes Program). The Consortium also compiles and distributes a monthly electronic newsletter to share research opportunities and other news with our members. Our members also receive a member directory, providing information on nearly 400 faculty members – their research interests, current projects, courses and contact information.