Abstract

RedGolfo: The Gulf of Mexico Marine Protected Area (MPA) Network was born out of the 2014 rapprochement between US and Cuban Presidents Barack Obama and Raúl Castro. After 55 years of political impasse, both countries saw cooperation as critical to mending relationships and made the conservation of shared marine resources a priority. The governments signed the Memorandum of Understanding on Cooperation in the Conservation and Management of Marine Protected Areas, the first major environmental agreement between the countries in 55 years, which created a unique network to facilitate joint efforts concerning the science, stewardship, and management of two MPAs in each country (NOAA, 2015). This agreement was orchestrated by the US’s National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and National Park Service and Cuba’s National Center for Protected Areas.