Your connection to the ocean is profound and complex.

We rely on the world’s oceans for our fisheries, energy, recreation, transportation, and our sense of connection to the natural world. But coastal and marine environments face increasing challenges from climate change, overuse, and pollution. The field of marine affairs involves building relationships, drawing information from multiple disciplines, and creating a clear overview so that communities can protect our oceans, and ensure human well-being.

The Marine Affairs Department at the University of Rhode Island was the first program of its kind in the nation, and is recognized as one of the most important. Our pioneering faculty have played a critical historical role in the development of coastal and ocean management programs in the U.S. and abroad, and their research attracts scholars and students from around the world.

Academics

Find out what makes our programs unique

Research

Our faculty contributes to important research in R.I. and around the world

Diversity

How we work towards justice, equity, diversity, and inclusivity

News

URI marks 50th anniversary of Marine Affairs graduate program, first in the world

In 1970, the University of Rhode Island became the first academic institution in the world to create a graduate program in ocean and coastal policy, management, and law.

• MAF Alum Susan Forcier appointed to lead RI Environmental Protection Bureau - Forcier earned an MMA from URI and a JD from Roger Williams University through our joint degree program in 2005.
• Hilda Lloréns Awarded 2022 Gregory Bateson Book Prize - The award is given to significant, ethnographically rich, and beautifully written books that address the urgent issues of our time the discipline of Anthropology.
• Prof. Becker & MAF grad students featured in URI Momentum Magazine article on RICHAMP -