To help prioritize among possible investments to improve the resilience of built infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico region, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine convened a diverse group of experts for a 3-day interactive workshop on November 15, 16, and 18, 2021. This workshop was held as communities surrounding the Gulf continue to experience frequent, destructive disasters, some infrastructure in the region continues to degrade or fail from exceeded capacity and delayed maintenance and replacement, and climate change threatens previously unimagined impacts. The workshop, titled Investing in Resilient Infrastructure in the Gulf of Mexico, demonstrated and refined a process to help inform recommendations for prioritizing infrastructure investments across sectors and anchored in the Gulf region energy industry. This publication summarizes the presentation and discussion of the workshop. Table of Contents Front Matter Summary Part 1 Introduction Part 2 Project Identification and Prioritization Part 3 Prioritization Framework Part 4 Next Steps Appendix A: Takeaways and Observations by Domain Appendix B: Complete List of Project Ideas Identified Appendix C: Prioritization Framework: Research and Rationale Appendix D: Event Agenda Appendix E: Biographical Sketches of Speakers and Steering Committee Appendix F: Event Participants

There are many connections between human communities and their surrounding environments that influence community resilience and health in the Gulf of Mexico. The impacts of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill on Gulf communities and ecosystems - coupled with the region's preexisting health challenges and environmental stressors - illustrate the need to better understand these connections. In the future, natural and man-made disasters, climate change impacts, and other environmental stressors will present complex challenges to the physical, mental, and social well-being of communities in the Gulf. Understanding the interrelationships among health, ecological, and economic impacts of disasters and other environmental stressors will be crucial to addressing these challenges. Opportunities for the Gulf Research Program: Community Resilience and Health summarizes a Gulf Research Program workshop held on September 22-23, 2014, in New Orleans, Louisiana. The workshop examined opportunities to improve the health, well-being, and resilience of communities in the Gulf region through discussions with about 50 participants with diverse expertise and experience. These discussions identified perceived needs, challenges, and opportunities that align with the Gulf Research Program's mission and goals - particularly its goal to improve understanding of the connections between human health and the environment to support the development of health and resilient Gulf communities. This workshop is expected to lead to the development of additional Program activities and opportunities for the research community. Table of Contents Front Matter 1 Introduction 2 Human Health, Public Health Practice, and Community Resilience 3 Perspectives on Resilient Communities 4 Reducing Risk and Improving Disaster Recovery 5 Building Resilience in the Gulf Region 6 Capacity to Address Environmental Health Risks 7 Long-term Opportunities 8 Lasting Benefit References A--Workshop Agenda B--Statement of Task C--Speaker Biographies D--Workshop Attendees E--Related Funding Programs

Consequences of natural disasters and the COVID-19 pandemic have taken a cumulative toll on the health and well-being of people in the Gulf of Mexico region. Long-standing societal challenges related to racism, poverty, education, housing, and underemployment are compounding the trauma, leading to chronic stress for many Gulf residents. The Committee on Progress Toward Human Health and Community Resilience in the Gulf of Mexico Region new report, Advancing Health and Community Resilience in the Gulf of Mexico Region: A Roadmap for Progress, explores key challenges and priorities in Gulf states, including Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas and evaluates recent progress. The report also makes recommendations for closing critical gaps and implementing transformative approaches that focus on the diverse needs and experiences of people who live and work in the Gulf region. Table of Contents Front Matter Summary 1 Introduction 2 Understanding Systems of Health and Community Resilience 3 Addressing Critical Data Gaps in Human Health and Community Resilience in the Gulf Region 4 Strengthening the Foundation: Pillars for Progress Toward Health and Community Resilience in the Gulf Region 5 A Road Map for Advancing Progress Towards Health and Community Resilience in the Gulf Region Appendix A: References Appendix B: Public Session Agendas Appendix C: Commissioned Paper: Current State of Health, Community Resilience, and Cohesion in the Gulf of Mexico Region Appendix D: Committee Members and Staff Biographical Sketches

During the period 1990 to 2010, U.S. job growth occurred primarily in the high-skilled and low-skilled sectors. Yet, one-third of projected job growth for the period 2010-2020 will require middle-skilled workers-who will earn strong middle-class wages and salaries-important to both the production and consumption components of our economy. These jobs typically require significant training, often requiring more than a high school diploma but less than a baccalaureate degree. In the Gulf of Mexico, middle skilled workers play key roles in maintaining oil system safety, completing the numerous environmental restoration projects needed along the Gulf coast, and as workers in an integrated and resilient public health system. Educational pathways that lead to middle skilled jobs in these areas include: apprenticeship programs offered by schools, unions, and employers; high school career and technical education programs; community college courses, certificates, and associate degrees; and employer provided training. Opportunities for the Gulf Research Program: Middle-Skilled Workforce Needs is the summary of a workshop held on June 9-10, 2014 in Tampa, Florida. This workshop convened 40 thought leaders from the Gulf region's education, employer, and policymaking communities to facilitate a discussion of the current state of education and training pathways for preparing the region\'s middle-skilled workforce in both the short- and long-term and to identify perceived needs and potential opportunities that might be addressed by the GRP. Workshop participants discussed a variety of opportunities around building capacity in the region's middle-skilled workforce, including the need for competency-based education and training approaches and stronger partnerships among the region's employers and institutions of higher education. Table of Contents Front Matter 1 Introduction 2 The Economic Returns from Higher Education 3 The Current and Future Gulf Workforce 4 The Knowledge, Skills, and Attitudes Needed for Success 5 Building Capacity in the Gulf Region's Middle-Skilled Workforce Appendix A: Workshop Agenda Appendix B: Speaker Biographies Appendix C: Workshop Attendees

Valued for its ecological richness and economic value, the U.S. Gulf of Mexico is under substantial pressure from human activities. The Deepwater Horizon platform explosion and oil spill significantly damaged Gulf ecosystems and led to the largest ecological restoration investment in history. The unprecedented number and diversity of restoration activities provide valuable information for future restoration efforts, but assessment efforts are hampered by many factors, including the need to evaluate the interaction of multiple stressors and consider long-term environmental trends such as sea level rise, increasing hurricane intensity, and rising water temperatures. This report offers a comprehensive approach to assess restoration activities beyond the project scale in the face of a changing environment. A main component of this approach is using different types of scientific evidence to develop "multiple lines of evidence" to evaluate restoration efforts at regional scales and beyond, especially for projects that may be mutually reinforcing (synergistic) or in conflict (antagonistic). Because Gulf of Mexico ecosystems cross political boundaries, increased coordination and collaboration is needed, especially to develop standardized data collection, analysis, synthesis, and reporting. With these improvements, program-level adaptive management approaches can be used more effectively to assess restoration strategies against the backdrop of long-term environmental trends. Table of Contents Front Matter Summary 1 Introduction 2 Environmental Trends and Indicators 3 Assessing Cumulative Effects of Restoration: Current and Emerging Approaches 4 Applications of Synthesis and Cumulative Effects Assessment in the Gulf of Mexico 5 Moving Forward References Appendix A: Distribution and Status of Funds Derived from Deepwater HorizonRelated Settlements Appendix B: Committee Member and Staff Biographies Appendix C: People Who Provided Input to the Committee

More than a decade after the Deepwater Horizon disaster, the Gulf Research Program convened a diverse group of 60 experts in a virtual event to inform its efforts to enhance resilience to future offshore oil disasters in the Gulf of Mexico region. The event, Offshore Situation Room, took place over three half-days during June 15-17, 2021, and had four main objectives: 1) develop a concise, prioritized list of questions that need to be addressed to support successful prevention, response, and recovery that would minimize the impacts of an offshore oil disaster; 2) provide a collaborative atmosphere where participants can share ideas, capabilities, and information, and build a community dedicated to the successful prevention of, response to, and recovery from an offshore oil spill disaster; 3) explore capabilities for and impediments to prevention, response, recovery, and understanding impacts of an offshore oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico; and 4) highlight how changes in policy, response, resilience, and restoration efforts may affect outcomes of a major offshore incident. This publication summarizes the presentations and discussion of the event. Table of Contents Front Matter Summary 1 Introduction 2 Opening Plenary: "A Decade Later, Where We Are at and Where We Are Going: A National Incident Commander Perspective 3 Incident-Phase Games Observations 4 Needs and Planning Game Actions 5 Closing Plenary: "What Just Happened?" 6 Next Steps Appendix A: Identified Actions Appendix B: Event Agenda Appendix C: Biographical Sketches of Keynote Speaker and Planning Committee Members Appendix D: Registered Event Participants

Environmental monitoring in the Gulf of Mexico poses extensive challenges and significant opportunities. Multiple jurisdictions manage this biogeographically and culturally diverse region, whose monitoring programs tend to be project-specific by design and funding. As a result, these programs form more of a monitoring patchwork then a network. At the same time, the Gulf monitoring community faces a unique opportunity to organize and think differently about monitoring - including how best to allocate and manage the resources for this large marine ecosystem and its communities - as a result of the infusion of resources for environmental restoration and related activities after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill. Opportunities for the Gulf Research Program: Monitoring Ecosystem Restoration and Deep Water Environments summarizes a Gulf Research Program workshop held on September 3-4, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The workshop gathered about 40 participants from the energy industry, state and federal government, academia, and nongovernmental organizations to examine two broad issues that were seen as time-sensitive opportunities in light of significant investments in the Gulf for restoration and accelerating development of energy resources in the deep Gulf: monitoring ecosystem restoration and deep water environments. As participants explored potential opportunities for the Program to consider, they noted the essential role that communication and outreach play in successful monitoring, and the importance of applying an ecosystem service approach to monitoring, forging partnerships among stakeholders, and supporting efforts to organize and manage monitoring data. Table of Contents Front Matter 1 Introduction 2 Environmental Monitoring: Lessons Learned, Needs and Opportunities in the Gulf of Mexico 3 Monitoring to Support Environmental Restoration 4 Monitoring Needs in the Deep Gulf of Mexico 5 Workshop Synopsis References Appendix A: Workshop Agenda Appendix B: Speaker Biographies Appendix C: Attendees' Roster