Strategic Planning Introduction

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Pacific Services Center's (PSC) strategic plan defines our vision, mission, and goals. The plan is the foundation of our service to the coastal resource managers of the State of Hawai'i, the Territories of American Samoa and Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and other U.S.- affiliated islands in the Pacific Ocean

PSC's strategic plan reflects the shared goals, concerns, and key issues discussed with the coastal management community The plan  also provides a foundation for the Pacific Island coastal communities to focus on what binds us together as we move forward on future initiatives.

As background, PSC was established in 2001 to improve and increase the delivery of NOAA's services to the Pacific Islands. Prior to PSC's opening, representatives from the coastal and ocean resource management community were consulted to discover their priority issues. Representatives from across NOAA, other federal agencies, state and territorial agencies, and nongovernmental organizations were engaged to better understand their coastal management issues and capabilities. Through this consultative process, the PSC's initial priority areas of safe navigation, partnership development, global information system technology, and hazard mitigation were determined. Underlying each of the project priority areas is an emphasis on partnering with members of the local coastal and ocean resource management community to fully understand and develop the specific types of assistance needed and, furthermore, how this assistance can be provided through specific activities that take into account the cultural and traditional practices.