The Lake Mead Science Symposium was designed for participants to share information important to the development of an interagency ecological monitoring plan for Lakes Mead and Mohave. The symposium featured three important plenary talks and six concurrent sessions on emerging issues, limnology and water quality, riparian and shoreline resources, aquatic biota and fisheries, environmental contaminants, and lake management. An overarching goal of these sessions is to identify data gaps, increase coordination of the various efforts, and provide a foundation for future research endeavors.