Program

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Sharks are an iconic global species with a reputation often based on fiction. Dr Chapple from the Big Fish Lab (BFL) at Oregon State University, the leading shark research lab in the Pacific Northwest, has studied sharks for over 20 years. He will share the BFL’s research on sharks in the Pacific Northwest and around the globe, with aims to replace fiction with fact.

Local leaders from diverse sectors will share their perspectives on the opportunities and challenges facing the region. These topics could be related to natural resources, community resilience, workforce and housing needs, tourism, infrastructure needs, food systems, etc.

• Lori Steele, West Coast Seafood Processors Association
• Denise Löfman, Columbia River Estuary Study Taskforce
• David Reid, Astoria-Warrenton Chamber of Commerce

Tsunami mitigation efforts come in many forms. This session will highlight how DOGAMI’s tsunami evacuation maps and Oregon Sea Grant’s Tsunami Quests are being used to increase preparedness in Seaside. 

Learn about NCLC’s engagement in coastal conservation from the Rainforest Reserve in the peaks of the coast range to the expansive Cape Falcon Marine Reserve, in an effort to protect and care for this rare and wonderful place where land meets sea.

Just as improved fish passage should provide benefits for a diverse set of species, fish passage work should benefit diverse communities. We discuss how the Necanicum Watershed Council has become a leader in ensuring representation and empowerment of underserved communities in the habitat restoration field.

The Oregon Coastal Mariculture Collaborative invites you to learn about our work investigating the future of sustainable mariculture on the coast.

Lethal removal of wild (non-stranded) sea lions presents a unique opportunity to investigate the prevalence of urogenital cancer (UGC), and associations between UGC and risk factors, including coastal pollutants.

Overview and status of the recreational and commercial razor clam fishery in Oregon

The Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission’s Coastal Margin Observation and Prediction program is a long-running research initiative based in the Columbia River estuary. Under new tribal leadership, we are expanding our observation and modeling capabilities to support salmon management.

Sarah Klain, ODFW; Samuel Cheplick, ODFW Sea Grant Fellow ; Megan Davis, OSU; Moritz Schmid, ODFW; Katy Bear Nalven, Cape Perpetua Collaborative

What have we learned from Oregon’s marine reserves? From a global perspective, Oregon’s marine reserves are highly unusual because the agency tasked with management, Oregon Department of Fish & Wildlife, has employed and collaborated with ecologists, social scientists and science communicators since the program’s inception. The goal continues to be better understanding not only ecological communities but also human communities connected to the reserves and communicating this broadly. A guiding future-oriented question for those who value and manage the marine reserves is how could this management agency, community partners and other collaborators cast the marine-reserves engagement net even more broadly? This session includes four lightning talks connected to this question. Talks will be interspersed with marine reserves Bingo, trivia, and Q&A with scientists and collaborators. Talks include:

• New marine reserves ecological updates, including underwater video footage, shark tagging, eDNA research, and a scholarship program for inclusive hook and line survey participation.
• A field report about creative community engagement efforts near Cape Perpetua.
• Results from interviews with Latinx community members about their ocean values, awareness of marine reserves and barriers as well as enabling factors for engaging in ocean conservation.
• Efforts to link the local to the global when it comes to marine reserve enabling conditions, including insights from Oregon relevant to other places considering marine reserves and protected areas.

Desiree Farrell, EPA - ORISE Postdoc; Patti Meeks, EPA; Beth Haley, EPA; Matt Harwell, EPA

About 40% of the world’s population live in coastal areas with 22% of those areas considered highly vulnerable due to risks associated with climate change like coastal flooding and sea-level rise. Additionally, communities in coastal areas continue to experience social and economic changes associated with systemic inequity, changing population demographics and pressures, and increased human activities related to a growing blue economy (the sustainable use of coastal and marine resources). Maps have long been an essential tool to spatially represent these and other coastal management issues, but mapping efforts have not always involved locals, or those most affected by a given coastal management issue. More recently, there has been a surge of “participatory mapping” a collaborative mapping effort that acknowledges the importance of public attitudes, values, perceptions, and knowledge for just and resilient community futures.  This session provides an opportunity to lend your voice to a participatory mapping activity and a broader conversation about Oregon coastal communities’ values and perceptions. In a hands-on mapping activity for everyone, we will be co-generating a community map representing your knowledge and lived experience, and discussing how this kind of collaboration can lead to increased resilience and capacity building in communities.

Marcus Hinz, Oregon Coast Visitors Association; Dr. James Sulikowski, Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station (COMES); Sheri Cole, OSU Dept of Food Science & Technology; Alanna Kieffer, Shifting, Tides LLC; Kean Fleming, Port Orford Sustainable Seafood

A major expansion of Oregon’s Blue Economy is coming and food systems are inevitably a major component. Recently, the Oregon Ocean Cluster (OOC) has joined the world community of Ocean Clusters, each inspired and mentored by the Iceland Ocean Cluster, and each addressing the unique challenges their communities face. The entire world is experiencing the effects of climate change and seeking innovative solutions to food security. Acknowledging that our "food system" is in fact, a complex, dynamic system, informs us we must apply a systematic approach to address seafood supply chain’s relationship to the issues of climate change, ocean health, sustainable economic development, food security, and emergency preparedness. As we know, Human Ecology combines a multidisciplinary approach from such fields as anthropology, sociology, biology, economics, history, and archaeology. This interdisciplinary approach helps us reframe and re-conceptualize our relationship to foods from the sea, our sense of place, our connection to culture, and our applications of science.  In essence, this offers us a roadmap for an aligned, multidisciplinary and multi-jurisdictional approach to reshaping our relationship to food. Join with us in this imaginative dialogue between and amongst session attendees and panelists to envision a new way.  Panelists will present a high level overview of OOC’s new Strategic Implementation Plan and initial accomplishments over the past 4 years; then quickly move into a facilitated dialectical dialogue with attendees about their ideas for future efforts, potential resources and partnerships which could contributed toward a healthy, vibrant and resilient Oregon Blue Economy

Michelle St. Martin, U.S. Fish & Wildlife; Jane Bacchieri, Elakha Alliance; Kyle Motley, Elakha Alliance; Angee Doerr (moderator), OSU

This session covers two recent studies related to sea otter reintroduction.  The Elakha Alliance will share results on the potential impacts of sea otter reintroduction on the tourism economies of Oregon's south coast, highlighting increased visitor numbers, local business growth, and community engagement.  U.S. Fish and Wildlife will share the findings of their 2023 public open house in Oregon and Northern California, and how they plan to use this information in determining next steps in evaluating reintroduction.

Gregory Krutzikowsky, ODFW; Carolyn Eckrich, ODFW;  Katlyn Lockhart, ODFW; Scott Marion, ODFW; Wave Morreto, OSU; and Olivia Boisen, OSU

The Oregon Conservation and Nearshore Strategy make up Oregon's State Wildlife Action Plan. It is used by state agencies, members of academia, non-governmental agencies and the public to help shape research and monitoring efforts, as well a voluntary conservation actions. Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife is currently in the process of reviewing and revising the Strategy for its mandatory 10-year update. This session will focus on some of the challenges that face the fish and wildlife species and their habitats in Oregon's Nearshore ocean and estuaries and how the Nearshore portion of the Strategy helps the state set priorities. The session will also outline the time line of the revision process that is due to be completed by October 1, 2025 and opportunities for broad public input.

Sara Hamilton, Oregon Kelp Alliance; Tom Calvanese, OSU/The Oregon Kelp Alliance; Diana Hollingshead, Reef Check Oregon; Justin Myers, The Oregon Kelp Alliance/Salt Water Social Club

In this session hosted by the Oregon Kelp Alliance (ORKA), ORKA Science Coordinator Sara Hamilton will report on their findings from the 2024 Oregon Kelp Forest Status Report (to be published in August 2024). This will include an overview of changes over time in Oregon’s kelp forests and the current state of kelp forests along the coast. ORKA Director Tom Calvanese will introduce the Oregon Kelp Forest Protection and Restoration Initiative, to be supported by a grant from NOAA/NMFS Habitat Restoration Program through 2026. The panelists will discuss how Oregonians can get involved with kelp forest stewardship here in Oregon. Diana Hollingshead, Oregon lead for the community science organization Reef Check, will discuss how divers can be involved with monitoring and urchin culling work in the coming years. Sara will discuss what knowledge and research gaps that students, researchers or community scientists could help fill. Tom will discuss workforce development and how folks engaged in the Blue Economy can partner with ORKA. Finally, ORKA communications team lead Justin Myers will share his experiences telling ORKA’s story and ways community members can share this story more broadly. After each section of this session, we will have a brief question and answer period for community members to engage with speakers.

Natalie Donato, OSU, Charles Nye, OSU, Emy Daniels, Independent artist, Jessica Schulte, OSU

Art is a powerful science communication tool, transcending the barriers of language and amplifying the impact of scientific findings and conservation movements. However, the supposed skills needed to create “good art” are often intimidating for aspiring artists. Breaking it down to the basics, scientists and professional artists Natalie Donato, Charles Nye and Emy Daniels are here to tell you that it’s not that bad! Provided with charcoal, pastels, paper and lessons in scaling, values, and forms, participants can learn the foundations of sketching and shading to create their own science-inspired illustrations. Incorporating the themes of scientific illustrations from the trio of presenters’ own research, items from across the coast will also be available to draw inspiration from, all the way from shells, algae, and fossils to marine mammal skeletons and a shark dissection specimen. Foundational lessons will be provided to the group, then participants can work independently or join each artist’s guided break-out session focusing on their field of illustration and study. All you need to do is bring your creativity, get ready to let loose and have fun!

Alessandra Burgos, OSU; Anne McBride, City of Seaside Emergency Manager; Felicia Olemta Schult, OSU; Representative from OR Disability Emergency Management Advisory Committee, Oregon Department of Human Services; Representative from Oregon Health Authority (OHA)’s Health Security, Preparedness and Response

This interactive session will explore the unique challenges and opportunities in hazard planning and adaptation for individuals with physical and mental disabilities, as well as other disproportionately affected groups such as older adults and young children. Emphasizing a holistic approach, the session will cover diverse perspectives and real-life experiences, from preparedness to evacuation and recovery. Panelists, including city planners, caregivers, emergency managers, and health professionals, will share insights on building inclusive and resilient communities, particularly along the Oregon Coast. Attendees will have the opportunity to engage with panelists through moderated discussions and explore personal stories and testimonies displayed in an immersive exhibit.

Charlie Plybon (moderator), Surfrider Foundation; Peter Ruggiero, OSU; Rhiannon Bezore, DLCD; Laurel Hillman, OPRD

Oregon's beaches are caught in the "coastal squeeze," between sea level rise and increased storm surges and the growing extent of shoreline armoring. The future of our iconic public beaches is very much in doubt, with implications for recreation, habitat, and tourism. This panel will discuss various aspects of this challenge: scientific tracking of sea level rise, erosion, and flooding; land use implications; management of our coastal beaches, state parks, and wildlife habitats; and a campaign to educate the Oregon public about potential solutions, both those feasible within Oregon's current framework of statutes and regulations, and those that would require legislation or rulemaking. Panelists will include Peter Ruggiero, coastal geomorphologist at Oregon State University; Rhiannon Bezore, Coastal Shores Specialist with the Department of Land Conservation and Development/Oregon Coastal Management Program; Laurel Hillman, Ocean Shore Specialist with the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department; and Charlie Plybon, Oregon Policy Manager with the Surfrider Foundation. Moderator will be Phillip Johnson, Shoreline and Land Use Manager with the Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition.

Hilary Boudet, OSU;, Shawn Hazboun, OSU; Greg Stelmach OSU; Taufiq Hossain Ahmed, OSU; Emily Miller, OSU; Sara Swett, OSU

The Biden Administration has set aggressive goals for decarbonization and renewable energy deployment, including offshore wind and wave energy. Coastal communities, tribes, and stakeholders are grappling with the impacts and benefits of marine energies, including how to negotiate community benefits arrangements. This panel will report on findings from several research efforts focused on the human dimensions of marine energies.

Greg Stelmach (School of Public Policy, Oregon State University) – Clustering perspectives of offshore wind on the U.S. West Coast

Taufiq Hossain Ahmed and Emily Miller (School of Public Policy, Oregon State University) – Community Benefits in offshore wind development

Sara Swett (Oregon Sea Grant) – (TBA)