Harmful algal blooms (HABs) are growing in extent, duration, and scope around the world. Beset by widespread and frequent HABs, East Africa’s Lake Victoria offers an exceptional context to study the dynamics and impacts of blooms. We propose here to integrate remote sensing tools to detect bloom conditions and extent developed by King’s College researchers with on-the-ground data collected by Cornell researchers, both in collaboration with the Kenya Marine and Fisheries Research Institute (KMFRI) and Regional Centre for Mapping of Resources for Development (RCMRD). This partnership will facilitate remote sensing seasonal and interannual variability in HABs and long-term trend analysis, and link HABs to public and ecosystem health challenges, including toxin accumulation in fish and drinking water and environmental impacts of aquaculture. The team’s regional investment, strong connections to KMFRI/RCMRD, and commitment to jointly advancing knowledge, publications, and external funding applications will enable us to leverage this project for long-term impacts.