BLUE INSTITUTE
The Blue Institute is a Registered Nonprofit 501(C)(3) currently located on Cape Cod in Massachusetts headquartered in the Harwich Cultural Center. Designed to be an "open access" hub for excellence in water education and research, the Blue Institute is a growing strategic consortium of dedicated “Triple Helix” partners (academia, industry, government) on a mission to create solutions for clean water, healthy oceans and climate change issues both local & global, and to educate the “NextGen” or next generation of water-thought leaders through hands-on training in the unique fresh water (Cape Cod has 365 lakes, ponds and streams - one for every day of the year!) and the saltwater ecosystem at and surrounding Cape Cod Bay, Nantucket Sound and the Atlantic Ocean.
Our Clean Water & Climate Change Story
The Next Generation
At the end of the day - it's all about their future.
Social Impact Education, Research, & Community
We aim to help educate young people to be the next generation of water thought leaders for their communities and the wider world. That could be as simple (and important) as serving on a local water resource committee, or exploring the burgeoning opportunities and career pathways in the water, marine and blue tech infrastructure and innovation sectors.
As a research center we will offer rotating topics of interest to bring researchers and practitioners together for a semester at a time from academia, industry and government to take a deep dive into collaborative working solutions - because we believe strongly in "innovation through collaboration."
Innovation & Entrepreneurship
Participating in the 2017 CleanTechOpen Accelorator convinced us to pull the innovation pillar out of the non-profit business model, and set up a separate legal entity, Blue Institute Labs, PBC (home to the Blue Incubator) - which is a Public Benefit Corporation committing 10% of its profits towards scholarships & fellowships at the Blue Institute. Our vision that co-locates the two entitities - Blue Innovation Center - supports regional and global economic development, research, entrepreneurship and commercialization in water security, aquaculture, BlueTech, and marine technology. The Blue Innovation Center will be the first oceanfront "Blue Tech", aquaculture and water security hub on the US Eastern Seaboard!
Our Offerings
EDUCATION
Our unique water-centric undergraduate “Blue Semester” program - the first pilot cohort in 2020-2021 - in collaboration with the School for the Environment at the University of Massachusetts, Boston and will be comprised of hands on experiential learning drawing from cross-disciplinary fields integrating science, art, policy, engineering, humanities, economics, and technology, and mini-internships with area practitioners, agencies and organizations. The program will introduce students to the rapidly growing opportunities in the “blue economy" & to also create a generation of “water knowledge ambassadors" to better serve the world. Introductory level, advanced undergrad and graduate courses will be available. Are you a college student or know one who might be interested in participating? Contact us at info@blueinstitute.org
RESEARCH
Research residencies will be open to scientists, graduate students and advanced undergraduates completing capstone projects. Students will have access to BlueTech and water security innovation incubator, fresh and salt water testing sites, and the area marine environments. The Institute supports sustainable water & ocean research which will bring together private and public sector projects, and research scientists in a unique academic and environmental ecosystem fostering collaborative exchanges, blue cluster development, and an innovative ecosystem.
COMMUNITY
Community engagement offerings on water and climate change cover many disciplines such as the Seaweed & Algae panel, local authors community writing workshops, and "Words on Water" writing competition for World Oceans Day, community science panels, Women on Water lecture series, H20 STEM Community Conference. K-12 special curriculum events for children, and future educational support for teachers through hands-on research focused workshops are being developed. In planning also are cross-generational collaborations through classroom and onsite experiential learning incorporating schools, community, and senior citizen area programs.
What You Can Do!
Get Involved
Are you passionate about what we're doing? Are you ready to dig in? Let us know! We are always looking for volunteers to help us make our vision a reality. We'll help you find a way to volunteer that best suits you. We're excited to have you join the team!
Summer 2020 Cape Cod & Plymouth
Join us next summer on Cape Cod to learn more about the water all around us & in Plymouth to explore STEM related BlueTech and underwater robots. Email us for info: info@blueinstitute.org
Thank You
Whether you help through monetary donations, volunteering your time with us, or spreading our mission through word-of-mouth, thank you. We accomplish our goals with the help of supporters like you.