One of the themes that has persisted through the Gulf of Maine Council's existence is the importance of viewing the Gulf of Maine as a single ecosystem—irrespective of political boundaries—and promoting cross-boundary collaboration to help manage the region's resources and address environmental concerns. This basic philosophy will help guide the Council toward one of its most ambitious long-term goals, which is to help identify and track a set of regional environmental indicators and produce a "State of the Gulf" report.

Environmental indicators are used to describe the status and trends of our natural resources, environmental health, and ecological condition. They help raise awareness about important issues, can inform environmental policy decisions, and serve as a tool for evaluating the effectiveness of management actions. Environmental indicators are similar to many of the economic and social indicators that are ingrained into our culture, such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Just as the Dow gives investors a general picture of the state of the market, environmental indicators give scientists and managers a picture of the state of our ecosystems. Read more