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8-11-08

Media Release

HMSC to Host Conference on “Sharing the Coast”

NEWPORT, Ore. – A conference called “Sharing the Coast” – designed for persons who teach others about the natural history of the region and the Pacific Ocean, or are simply fascinated by those topics – will be held Aug. 15-17 at Oregon State University’s Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport.

A series of workshops and field trips are scheduled as part of the conference, which costs $30 to attend. The event is sponsored by the CoastWatch program of the Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition and the Northwest Aquatic and Marine Educators. Members of either organization may attend for half price.

A series of lectures, one on Friday night and three Saturday, are free and open to the public.

John McGowan, a professor of oceanography at the Scripps Institution of Oceanography for 40 years, will speak Friday at 7 p.m. on “The State of the Ocean.” His studies have focused on the relationship between climate and the physics and biology of the ocean.

On Saturday, Aug. 16, marine educator Marty Giles will speak on “The World of the Beach” beginning at 10 a.m.; Sam Chan, of the Oregon Sea Grant program based at OSU, will speak on “Invasive Species and How They are Reshaping the Oregon Coast” at 11 a.m.; and author Skye Moody will speak on “What We Can Learn from Flotsam and Jetsam” at 1 p.m.

The free lectures will be held in the Hatfield Marine Science Center auditorium.

The series of workshops will focus on educating participants about climate change, invasive species, tsunamis, tidepool ecology, protecting coastal cultural sites and teaching methods.

Participants in the Sunday field trips will explore Seal Rock tidepools, see how exhibits are prepared for the Hatfield Marine Science Center visitor center, take a walk along the Yaquina Bay estuary, get a behind-the-scenes tour of the Oregon Coast Aquarium, or go on a flotsam and jetsam scavenger hunt at Agate Beach.

Pre-registration is recommended, though not required. More information is available by contacting Fawn Custer of Sea Grant Extension at 541-867-0329 or fawn.custer@oregonstate.edu, or Phillip Johnson of CoastWatch at 503-238-4450, orshores@teleport.com.

About OSU's Hatfield Marine Science Center: The center is a research and teaching facility located in Newport, Ore., on the Yaquina Bay estuary, about one mile from the open waters of the Pacific Ocean. It plays an integral role in programs of marine and estuarine research and instruction, as a laboratory serving resident scientists, as a base for far-ranging oceanographic studies and as a classroom for students.