“Campus renewal”—a ten-year program of laboratory and facility construction—anticipates the ways in which oceanography will evolve. It will also provide scientists and engineers with the infrastructure they need today and tomorrow to develop technologies and conduct world-class research.
Campus renewal will be rolling out in two phases. Phase One projects—replacement of the pier and seawater pump house, creation of the Ocean Robotics Laboratory, and modernization of the Marine Operations facility—have been designed and approved, and construction is either underway or imminent. Meanwhile, projects slated for Phase Two are taking shape as design development, rough cost estimating and preliminary discussions progress.
Overall, execution of the plan will help GSO achieve its long-term strategic goal to grow as a world-class oceanographic research and educational institution, while boosting Rhode Island’s blue economy. “We are preparing the next generation of oceanographers and ocean engineers to be at the forefront of the advancements in ocean science,” said GSO Dean Paula Bontempi. “To continue this important work, we need the proper facilities that will allow our faculty and students to make lasting contributions that we can share with the world.”
Buildings and facilities planned for the Narragansett Bay Campus will unleash the potential of the faculty and researchers who occupy them. “Our scientists have evolved, our laboratory needs have evolved, computing and research technologies have grown with leaps and bounds in all of the many directions of oceanographic science,” said Bontempi.
Meet those who will be working in these new facilities. In addition to providing an overview of their work, Aboard GSO shares why these future occupants eagerly anticipate the day their new spaces come online.