Don Perkins, President and CEO of the Gulf of Maine Research Institute, is Retiring When a Successor is Chosen. (Photo Courtesy of GMRI)

Don Perkins, 28 year President and CEO of the Gulf of Maine Research Institute (GMRI) announced this morning that he is retiring from his post as the leader of a highly respected non-profit when a sucessor is chosen.  That will probably come in the summer of 2023 according to a press release issued by the GMRI. GMRI is located at 350 Commercial Street on the Portland waterfront.

The non-profit has retained head hunter firm Spencer Stuart to conduct a national search which is set to begin in November 2022.  The Board expects to have the next CEO in place by the summer of 2023.

Under Perkins leadership, GMRI has grown from  an organization of two to a world-class research institute with a staff of almost 100 internationally recognized research scientists, seafood supply chain and fisheries experts, climate change leaders and skilled science educators.  The Institute was the first to identify the Gulf of Maine as one of the fastest-warming ocean ecosystems on earth and is now contributing solutions to climate challenges from the local to the global scale.

“The stability and strength of the organization in  this moment makes for ideal timing for this transition,” said Perkins in the press release.  “Our commitment and discipline to our mission will endure throughout and beyond this transition, as will our service to our many stakeholders.  We aim to find a successor with the experience and skills to carry on this important work.”

Please visit    www.gmri.org for more information on this non-profit.