MSI maintains a focused commitment of cooperation and partnerships with other agencies and groups concerned with the conservation, utilization, and well-being of fishery resources of Alaska and the nation. These involvements include other federal and state government agencies, universities, and private sector groups, as well as international organizations.

Aquaculture Organizations
MSI conducts a variety of cooperative involvements with aquaculture organizations, including collaborative research efforts, data analyses, and joint consultations related to stock enhancement and other issues of mutual interest with the following groups:
Northern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association (NSRAA)
Douglas Island Pink and Chum, Inc. (DIPAC)
Southern Southeast Regional Aquaculture Association (SSRAA)
Prince William Sound Aquaculture Association (PWSAC)
Pacific Aquaculture Caucus (PAC)

Exxon Valdez Oil Spill (EVOS) Trustee Council
EVOS Trustee Council provides funding support for certain research projects conducted by MSI and other ABL Programs. These studies include research on the effects of oil exposureon the biology of pink salmon, and how homing and straying behavior of salmon are affected by oil exposure and different types of tagging.

North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission (NPAFC)
NPAFC, an international treaty organization including Canada, Japan, Russia, Korea, and the United States, promotes conservation and research on anadromous stocks of salmon in the North Pacific Ocean. MSI program staff participate in various NPAFC functions and committees, especially in presenting results of research findings at technical workshops and symposiums. Much of MSI’s research falls under the umbrella of a formal NPAFC science plan focused on marine ecology of juvenile salmon.

Pacific Salmon Commission (PSC)
PSC is the ruling body coordinating Pacific Salmon Treaty accords between Canada and the United States. MSI staff participates on several PSC Bilateral Technical Committees including Chinook Technical Committee (CTC), Northern Boundary Technical Committee, and the Transboundary Technical Committee that provides scientific input into respective areas of concern between the two countries.

Pacific States Marine Fish Commission (PSMFC)
PSMFC is a multi-agency organization promoting and supporting policies and actions directed at the conservation, development, and management of fishery resources of mutual concern to member states through a coordinated regional approach to research, monitoring, and utilization. One key issue is management of a coded-wire tag (CWT) database on North Pacific salmonid marking programs conducted by many states and agencies, including Canada. The Regional Mark Processing Center (RMPC) of PSMFC maintains this coastwide database to facilitate exchange of data between release agencies, sampling/recovery agencies, and other data users. MSI program maintains several different components of this coastwide CWT database. For further information, see Coded Wire Tags.

Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G)
MSI program is involved with frequent collaborative work with ADF&G including most divisions within that department. This cooperation includes research activities at Auke Bay Laboratory.

University of Alaska Fairbanks (UAF) School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (SFOS)
Located adjacent to ABL’s new facility at Ted Stevens Marine Research Institute (TSMRI), the Juneau Center of the SFOS is closely involved in many MSI projects, especially research at the Auke Creek weir, the Little Port Walter Marine Station field station, the Genetics Laboratories at TSMRI, and in cooperative research funded through PSC Northern Funds and Pacific States Salmon Recovery Funds. An added benefit of this close affiliation is that many ABL and MSI staff are alumni of the UAF SFOS.

U.S. GLOBEC (GLOBal Ocean ECosystems Dynamics)
GLOBEC-funded salmonid research in the MSI Program is focused on broad scale ecosystems issues. Faculty and graduate students from SFOS frequently participate cooperatively in these ongoing studies that are of particular benefit and interest to both the NMFS and the University of Alaska. The MSI program frequently helps support SFOS graduate students with GLOBEC funding and appropriate thesis projects.

Purdue University and Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC)
Researchers at Purdue University and NWFSC are collaborating with researchers at the Little Port Walter Marine Station on identifying genetic loci in steelhead that are associated with the expression of quantifiable traits, or QTLs, specifically associated with anadromy. These traits quantify the ability to migrate and survive in seawater and return to spawn in freshwater. Identification of these loci will aid managers in genetically determining which populations of rainbow trout have an anadromous legacy component to enable appropriate ESA steelhead restoration activities.

Student Internships
Student interns from universities across the U.S., sponsored through the Hollings scholar program and the Alaska Fisheries Science Center, participate in research projects at the Little Port Walter Marine Station in 10-week summer intern positions.