The Indian River Lagoon on the east coast of Florida is a biodiverse ecosystem of temperate and tropical habitats with significant aesthetic, social, and economic value. However, development pressures have been increasing for decades with 2016 being a year of record algal blooms and fish kills.

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La costa de Yucatán, en el NE de México, que limita con el Golfo de México, apoya una alta biodiversidad de plantas y animales, así como importantes actividades pesqueras y de turismo. Sin embargo, el rápido crecimiento de la región en términos de desarrollo costero está poniendo una inmensa presión sobre estos recursos naturales.

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The Yucatan coast of NE Mexico that borders the Gulf of Mexico supports a high biodiversity of plants and animals, as well as important fisheries and tourism activities. However, the region's rapid growth in terms of coastal development is putting immense pressure on these natural resources.

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Assessment of natural resource condition within Shenandoah National Park was carried out using the National Park Service Inventory and Monitoring Program Vital Signs ecological monitoring framework. The park was categorized into six reporting areas based on two altitudes and three major geology types underlying Shenandoah National Park. Thirty-one metrics were analyzed for 14 indicators grouped into four categories:

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This newsletter details the use of symbols as a visual language. Symbols are useful for depicting unequivocal messages that transcend cultures, languages and times. The use of symbols to construct conceptual diagrams ('thought drawings') can be an effective tool for science communication and problem solving. Conceptual diagrams help to clarify thinking and provide a communication interface between scientists and non-scientists.

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As an Indian River Lagoon report card was being prepared in a collaboration between the Marine Resource Council and IAN, a brown algal bloom led to huge numbers of dead fish and other aquatic life. This Florida ecosystem of a chain of coastal rivers and lagoons has been struggling for years under a heavy pollution load entering its waters.

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The development of the first Ecosystem Health Report Card for Laguna de Bay, the largest in-land body of water in the Philippines, was funded by the Global Environment Facility (GEF) and jointly implemented by the Partnerships in Environmental Management for the Seas of East Asia Resource Facility (PRF) and the Laguna Lake Development Authority (LLDA).

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This report card was produced in December 2015 by The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science and represents a joint effort of graduate students and faculty in the Marine Estuarine Environmental Sciences program at the Appalachian Laboratory in Frostburg and the Integration and Application Network. The report card provides an assessment of stream health in the Upper Potomac Headwaters region upstream of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia.

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The Report Card measured six broad goals for America's Watershed - Ecosystems, Flood Control & Risk Reduction, Transportation, Water Supply, Economy, and Recreation. The Report Card Measures how well we are currently meeting each one of these goals, using real data and relevant information that was identified by experts in these fields. Over time, as we adapt our management strategies for the Mississippi River Watershed, the Report Card can track progress in achieving objectives.

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The South Atlantic Landscape Conservation Cooperative (South Atlantic LCC) is a partnership of federal, state, and private organizations dedicated to conserving a landscape capable of sustaining the nation’s natural and cultural resources for current and future generations. The primary objective of this project was to develop a short synthesis report assessing 11 habitats, using a variety of ecological indicators.

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