Fonds consists of records pertaining primarily to the professional activities of Elisabeth Mann Borgese, focusing on major organizations and projects with which she was affiliated from the beginning of her North American career in the 1940s. The collection includes correspondence, publications and drafts, administrative records, conference materials, sound and video recordings, research materials, photographs, and other materials.

Fonds contains records created and collected by Ronald O'Dor in the course of his work as a marine biologist based at Dalhousie University, predominantly materials generated by the two major research projects: Census of Marine Life (CoML) and Ocean Tracking Network (OTN). Record types include research data, teaching materials, publications, manuscripts, correspondence, and committee and meeting minutes.