Peter Doherty The Australian Institute of Marine Science is funded on a triennial basis, which allows planning and forward commitment to major research tasks extending over several years. In 2000-01, we start a new triennium and this document describes our plan and means for achieving our agreed objectives during the next three years. The Research Plan 2000-2003 is based on five Projects which represent the Institute's Strategic Directions . Within Projects, research teams are formed and dissolved to provide flexible delivery of the Institute's mission in a world of competing demands and changing priorities. Within this context, choices must be made about priorities.
Most Projects range between tactical and strategic basic research.
This will remain our core business along with the application of technology to develop sustainable industries. In all endeavours, we aspire to excellence by producing world class science. Many of the research teams formed for this triennium will be multidisciplinary. Flexible mixing of skills is another traditional strength of the AIMS research program. It is paramount to meeting the challenges posed by complex environment issues such as assessing land-based threats to the quality of ecosystems in the Great Barrier Reef World Heritage Area or assessing the threat of Greenhouse gas emissions to coral reefs in the next generation.