About | Mission | Visions II | Code of Ethics

About the Federation

The similarity and diversity of estuaries is also characteristic of the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation, a multidisciplinary organization of individuals who study and manage the structure and functions of estuaries and the effects of human activities on these fragile environments.

The Federation's members are dedicated to advancing human understanding and appreciation of the Earth's estuaries and coasts, to the wise use and management of these environments and to making the results of their research and management actions available to their colleagues and to the public. Members of the Federation include academic researchers, public sector managers, teachers, consultants, students and others who are interested in estuaries.

The Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation is a private, nonprofit non partisan organization. The Federation was created in 1971, when the members of two older, regionally-based estuarine research societies (AERS and NEERS) decided that a national organization was needed to address estuarine and coastal issues more broadly. The regionally based Affiliate Societies now number seven and encompass all of the coastal regions that border the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The Mission of The Federation 

The Federation advances understanding and wise stewardship of estuarine and coastal ecosystems worldwide. Its mission is to:

  • Promote research in estuarine and coastal ecosystems
  • Support education of scientists, decision-makers and the public
  • Facilitate communication among these groups

Membership in the Federation is open to all who support these goals. The Federation currently has approximately 1,650 members, and approximately 1,000 more who are members of the Affiliate Societies.

The Federation addresses the purposes listed above by convening conferences in odd-numbered years (see Meetings), through the more frequent meetings of its Affiliate Societies in their regions and through regular publication of the scholarly journal Estuaries and Coasts and the Newsletter. In addition, the Federation serves as a source of advice on estuarine and coastal matters by responding to requests for information from legislative and management organizations.

VISIONS II: What lies ahead for CERF?

The last formal strategic planning by the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation took place during the early 1990s. A "Visions Report", published in the October 1993 Newsletter, made numerous recommendations for strengthening the Federation by extending our focus beyond estuaries to coasts, wetlands and coastal waters; increasing member participation in the organization; and increasing communication among members and between CERF, other stakeholders, students and more.

Over the years since 1993, the Federation has grown significantly. For example:

  • Membership has increased by more than 60% and conference attendance has doubled.
  • The number of pages published in our journal Estuaries and Coasts has tripled and the journal has made the transition from paper to electronic format.
  • Two new regional Affiliate Societies joined the Federation.
  • We created four scientific awards to recognize outstanding achievements.
  • We now have three special funds to support projects.

The growing numbers indicate important momentum toward our goals of promoting estuarine and coastal research, management and public awareness of these important ecosystems.

In Fall 2003, the CERF Governing Board restructured the way we "do business" to incorporate regular strategic planning exercises. After identifying broad strategic goals, we engaged in structured planning activities in the areas of Affiliate Societies, Communications, Education, Fundraising, International Activities, Membership and Policy.

The results of nearly two years of work on these topics were discussed with the membership at a Town Hall Meeting held at the Biennial Conference on October 18, 2004. You shared your ideas with us on topics such as how to enhance international participation in the Federation, how to best enhance the exchange of technical information between scientists involved in research and those involved in management and policy, and how to maintain steady membership growth and enhance the diversity of the Federation.

Visions II Section Drafts

Code of Ethics

This Code of Ethics was created in 1991. It is presented here for members' consideration and information.

Preamble

This Code provides guiding principles of conduct for all members of the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation. Recognition of professional status by the public depends not only on skill and dedication but also on adherence to a code of professional conduct.

  1. A CERF member shall act at all times with integrity.
    • Will offer professional advice only on those subjects in which they are informed and qualified through training and experience.
    • Will avoid and discourage the dissemination of false, erroneous, biased, unwarranted or exaggerated statements.
    • Shall clearly differentiate opinions, theories, hypotheses and ideas.
    • Will support and promote equal opportunities in all professional activities
    • Will not engage in any activity that might result in a conflict of interest (and will be conscious of the appearance of a conflict of interest).
  2. A CERF member should strive to increase his/her competence and the competence and prestige of the profession.
    • In any communication will give full and proper credit to and will avoid misrepresentation of the work and ideas of others.
    • Shall exercise utmost care in laboratory and field research.
    • Within reasonable limits of time and finance will volunteer their special knowledge, skill and training to the public.
    • Will keep informed of advances in his/her field of expertise, including methodologies of data acquisition and analysis.
    • Will fulfill acknowledged commitments in a timely manner.
  3. A CERF member will accept responsibility for his/her work.
    • Shall report accurately, truthfully and clearly the information pertinent to a given project and will convey findings objectively.
    • As an author, should have made a substantial contribution to the manuscript in at least two of the following ways:
      • 3.2.1 Conceiving the ideas and design of the experiment;
      • 3.2.2 Participating in the active execution of the study;
      • 3.2.3 Analyzing and interpreting the data;
      • 3.2.4 Writing the manuscript.
    • The principal investigator(s) of a research project should establish a clear understanding with everyone working on the project as to the right of any person to publish a paper using data collected in that project.
    • An author should not submit a manuscript to a journal while it is already under review by another journal.
    • Original records of research methods, conditions, equipment, personnel, results, analyses, and statistical tests should be retained for several years after publication of results.