The University of California Marine Council (UCMC) was established to provide leadership and direction to the University in the coordination of marine policy, research, education and public service and the exercise of responsible stewardship of the state's marine resources.

In 2000, the Marine Council was successful in developing an Initiative on California Coastal Environmental Quality that was funded by the state legislature at $1.5 million annually. This program is administered jointly by the Marine Council and the Office of the President, and through a close interaction with the State Resources Agency, has developed a set of priorities and a process for reviewing and funding research proposals focused on California's coastal ocean issues and problems. The objective is to address California's coastal issues in ways that will not only contribute to increasing our scientific understanding of both natural processes and human-induced changes, but that are also useful to legislators, public policy makers and managers who must make the decisions required for the long-term sustained health of California's ocean.