In 1998, BBSR established the International Center for Ocean and Human Health, considered the first of its kind on an international scale. The Center is designed to address both health of the ocean (such as pollution threats) and health from the ocean (including nutrients and pharmaceutical applications).

Bermuda's location and BBSR's long history of research and education in key environments make BBSR the logical place for establishment of such an international center. Bermuda's environment is similar to that of tropical coastal areas of many developing nations, where population increases are forecast to be greatest, thus threatening both the environment and human health. Bermuda is the ideal place for development of "early warning systems" of ecological change in these similar environments. And the potential of coral reefs and the deep ocean (a two-hour sail from Bermuda) for pharmaceutical and industrial applications remains largely untapped.

In addition to resident BBSR faculty, the Center includes major contributions from partner marine scientists, public health experts, and physicians at the Harvard School of Public Health, Laval University (Quebec), and Plymouth University (U.K.).  The National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission co-sponsored a workshop at BBSR in November 1999 on indicators of ocean and human health that involved ocean health and public health experts from around the world.