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a b s t r a c tIn the United States, management of marine and coastal resources has moved towards ecosystem-based management (EBM), which is a more systematic and integrated approach than conventional (e.g., single sector or single species) approaches. This paper summarizes the status of EBM for federal programs under the agencies of the National Ocean Council that implement or support marine and coastal EBM activities. Using social network analysis techniques, including network visualization, cohesion measures, programs degree and betweenness centrality, similarities among programs in different topic areas (e.g., type of audience, partners, training, EBM best management practices and principles) were explored. Results highlight substantial differences in perceived and effective performances across programs, with Management programs showing a higher level of integration of EBM approaches than Non-Management programs. The use of EBM best management practices and principles among programs is unbalanced, with some key elements of EBM strategies less commonly employed in the management planning. This analysis identified gaps in the implementation of EBM strategies that can inform natural resource managers and other interested parties. This paper presents the results of the analysis and discusses the implications for the implementation of EBM approaches and strategies at the federal level.Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Over the past two decades, Trinidad and Tobago has promoted explosive expansion of tertiary education. As with many growing postsecondary education systems, this increase in tertiary enrollment has led to the development of student support services (Haddad & Altbach, 2009). The field of student services is growing throughout the Caribbean (Reynolds, 2008), but there is currently little research on the role of student services in fostering students' sense of belonging specific to the Caribbean cultural context. Using data from over 900 students at the University of Trinidad and Tobago, we examined students' sense of belonging in the context of T&T. Findings point to the key role that student services professionals play in promoting students' sense of belonging, but the limited interactions that students are having digitalcommons.unl.edu