When Will the Next SSEC Take Place?
Western Washington University Conference Services and the Salish Sea Institute announced recently that they cannot continue to be the administrative home for the conference. Given that the SSEC is a critically important mechanism for transboundary collaboration and coordination on the Salish Sea, the conference remains a high priority.
The Puget Sound Partnership (PSP) is pleased to announce that the EPA Puget Sound Program will provide funding to PSP to lead an effort to identify options for a host organization for future Salish Sea Ecosystem Conferences.
Due to the extended lead time necessary to secure a venue, and the need to complete the analysis the Puget Sound Partnership has underway to assess and recommend a sustainable path forward, there will be no Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference in 2024.
We look forward to sharing the future of the Conference with you. If you have any questions or suggestions, please reach out to Todd Hass at todd.hass@psp.wa.gov or 360-280-1588.
Virtual Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference 2022
Honoring our Ancestors: Visions for Future Generations and the Salish Sea
April 26-28, 2022
How to Access Content from the Virtual Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference 2022
The virtual event portal remains open for registered attendees but will be closing soon
(To access the event portal, you will need the PIN that was emailed to you from ssec [at] eventsair.vendor.wwu.edu)
After the event portal is closed, all 2022 presentations will be available publicly on the SSEC repository site, Western CEDAR, unless an embargo was placed by the author/s.
Note that if you did not attend the conference you will not have access to the portal, but can still see materials when they are posted on CEDAR. If you would like access to conference materials before February, reach out to conferences@wwu.edu.
Important Dates
Call for Submissions Closed | September 21 – November 1, 2021 | Read More |
Early Bird Registration Closed | December 8, 2021 – February 7, 2022 | Read More |
Conference Schedule Available Now | Late January, 2022 | Read More |
Regular Registration Closed | February 8 – April 20, 2022 | Read More |
Conference Dates Ended | April 26-28, 2022 |
We invite a diversity of conference participants to come together to create a new vision of the Salish Sea based on knowledge of the past, the lessons of the present, and a hope for the future.
Our aim is that this conference will help us see how we can “work together in the spirit of all our Ancestors to carry out our responsibilities for this ground on which we stand or for this water on which we depend for our sustenance, our way of life.”
We hope that our diverse conference experiences will provide learnings and spur connections from which we create the change that is needed for future generations to thrive and prosper in harmony with the Salish Sea.
Please join us in creating the conference and future that we envision.
Italicized text quotes from the 2010 Coast Salish Gathering Treatise

Virtual Conference Includes
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- Over 200 Presenters Across Concurrent Sessions
- Live Plenary Sessions
- Live Poster Sessions with Interactive Opportunities
- Snapshot Presentation Recordings
- Networking Opportunities
- Sponsorship & Exhibitor Opportunities
Thanks to Our Sponsors
For information on how to become a sponsor, please email ssec@wwu.edu
2022 SSEC Named a UN Ocean Decade Activity
We are excited to announce that the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference (SSEC) has been endorsed as a UN Ocean Decade activity, in recognition of our role in guiding solutions to the challenges facing the Salish Sea. The UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) provides an opportunity to create a new foundation across the science-policy interface to strengthen the management of our oceans and coasts for the benefit of humanity. Aligned with the UN Ocean Decade, the SSEC provides a platform to improve scientific collaboration, share data, and promote interdisciplinary and transboundary dialogues to support knowledge-based collective action.
Find out about the UN Ocean Decade and how you can get involved in the Northeast Pacific region.
About the Conference
The Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference brings together scientists, knowledge holders, First Nations and tribal government representatives, resource managers, community and business leaders, and policy makers to share science and stories of the Salish Sea. It is the premier scientific research and policy gathering in the Pacific Northwest. The presentations and discussions that occur at the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference are a platform to build shared policies and practices to guide future actions for protecting and restoring the Salish Sea and its watersheds. The outcomes are improved scientific collaboration, data sharing and dynamic discussions on the state of the Salish Sea ecosystem, and collaborative action. The Conference is administered by Western Washington University’s Salish Sea Institute.
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