Coastal resources of developed and developing nations are being adversely affected by human activities and environmental degradation, and the fate of the Indian Ocean is no exception. In an effort to improve the current state of this important large marine ecosystem (LME) and to prevent future damage, a symposium on the status and future of LMEs of the Indian Ocean was held in Kenya by marine experts from the region. It was organized to review results from various studies, including reports on the Somali Current, the Agulhas Current, the Bay of Bengal, the Arabian Sea, and a number of other LMEs, representing contributions from 19 countries. The studies in this book were selected from among those presented at the symposium and have been peer reviewed. In addition, they have been augmented with a peer reviewed study describing an innovative strategy for the assessment and management of the Bay of Bengal ecosystem.