Conference Engagement Opportunities
There are many ways to engage the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference!
We are hosting four Salish Sea Cafés on Zoom. These virtual gatherings are opportunities for early career professionals, students, scientists, government officials, practitioners, and NGO representatives to come together to interact and discuss relevant issues and topics in relation to the 2022 Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference. Sign up for one or all!
Uplifting Future Generations of Salish Sea Leaders
Friday, March 25
12pm – 1pm (PST)
Shared Visions: Honoring Multiple Ways of Knowing
Friday, April 8
12pm – 1pm (PST)
Cultivating an Inclusive Salish Sea Conference
Friday, April 22
12pm – 1pm (PST)
Preparing Future Ancestors
Friday, May 6
12pm – 1pm (PST)
Discounted Tickets to the Seattle Aquarium for SSEC Participants
April 11 – May 5
The Seattle Aquarium is offering 10% off admissions for SSEC participants between April 11 and May 5. Please use the discount code SSEC10 when you purchase your ticket(s) online.
Image source: Wikicommons
Marine Science and Chardonnay and Port Townsend Bay
Sunday, April 24 1pm-5pm
Spend an afternoon touring through the Port Townsend Marine Science Center in the Kitsap Peninsula, followed by a happy hour at the Port Townsend Winery
Meet at Port Townsend Marine Science Center at Fort Worden State Park (Google Maps)
All Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Participants and guests are welcome
Register here
Questions? Contact Melissa Schutten melissa.schutten@psp.wa.gov
Image Source: Trip Advisor
BIPOC Networking at the Seattle Aquarium
Monday, April 25 3pm-6pm
The Seattle Aquarium invites BIPOC folx to start off the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference week with a networking event. We will meet at the entrance to the Seattle Aquarium at 3pm to explore exhibits for about an hour (admission will be covered), then will head up the cafe for happy hour from 4-6pm (two drinks will be covered). Join us and let’s get to know each other!
Meet at Seattle Aquarium (1483 Alaskan Way, Seattle, WA 98101)
BIPOC conference attendees register here (registration required)
Questions? Contact Amy Olsen a.olsen@seattleaquarium.org
Image Source: Seattle Aquarium
You Survived the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Happy Hours
Thursday, April 28 5:30pm -7:30pm
Bellingham, hosted by Salish Sea Institute: Kulshan Trackside (Google Maps) – Questions? Contact Natalie.Baloy@wwu.edu
Seattle, hosted by Long Live the Kings: Bale Breaker & Yonder Cider Taproom
(773) 998-1464 (Google Maps)
RSVP here
Questions? Contact Allegra Horioka ahorioka@lltk.org
Image Source: Kulshan Brewing
Connect across the Border for a Peace Arch Picnic
Friday, May 6, 3:30pm-6:30pm
The Salish Sea Institute invites the Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference community to celebrate the end of this year’s conference cycle with a picnic at the Peace Arch. Meet at the American Kitchen at the Park (no need to go through border crossing for US or Canadian attendees). Drop in whenever for time together outdoors. Snacks and refreshments will be provided for this family-friendly event.
Meet at American Kitchen at Peace Arch Park (Google Maps)
All Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Participants and guests are welcome
Register here (Registration requested but not required)
Questions? Contact Natalie.Baloy@wwu.edu
Image Source: Peace Arch News
Celebrate the Salish Sea at 7 Seas
MONDAY, MAY 9, 5-8pm
Celebrate the closing of the 2022 Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference by gathering with friends, colleagues, and peers for a casual happy hour social gathering, networking, and connection opportunity. Drop in anytime and bring your friends and family. The taproom is family friendly. We will provide a few light snacks and nonalcoholic beverages, additional beverages (alcoholic and nonalcoholic options) and food are available for purchase through the taproom.
Location: 7 Seas Brewery and Taproom, 2101 Jefferson Ave, Tacoma, WA 98402
Date and Time: May 9th, 5pm – 8pm
All Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference Participants and guests are welcome
Please register in advance. (Room will hold ~50 people)
Questions? Please contact Alexandra Doty, alexandra.doty@psp.wa.gov.
Date: Thursday, April 21, 2022
Time: 6-9pm
Description: Screening of the Salish Sea Films
Registration: Advance Registration Required – Limited Space Available
The Hundred-Year-Old Whale
Born in an era when whales were on everyone’s menu and her family members were being harpooned, then shot, then captured and put on display, Granny (J2) miraculously survived in the west coast waters for over a century as the world – and the world of whales – has changed completely. We meet the world’s oldest killer whale and explore her past and her family’s future.
Producer: Middle Child Films
Contact: tony@middlechildfilms.com
Film Length: 15 minutes
Olympic Coast as Sentinel
Indigenous people have depended on Olympic Coast marine species for their livelihoods, food security and cultural practices for thousands of years. Today, these species—and the tribal communities that depend on them—are at risk from ocean acidification. Washington Sea Grant, in partnership with the Olympic Coast Treaty Tribes, federal and academic scientists and coastal managers, is working to understand and plan for the impacts of ocean change to tribal community well-being.
Producer: Washington Sea Grant
Contact: mchadsey@uw.edu
Film Length: 20 minutes
Lifeblood: Connected by water, united by hope
The environmental problems we face today are rooted in the context of our histories. Lifeblood shows how groups historically at odds with one another are finding ways to come together for a better future in the Pacific Northwest. The film explores how four groups of people — fishermen, indigenous tribes, farmers, and scientists — are moving beyond past mistrust to forge a new path for healthy ecosystems that works for us all.
Producer: Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife
Contact: lindsey.desmul@dfw.wa.gov
Film Length: 20 minutes
The Return
“The Return” tells the story of the Brunette watershed which lies in Vancouver, BC. Once an important salmon bearing area, it became severely degraded due to industrialization that caused the run to collapse. Though levels of governments had abandoned hope, concerned citizens (both First Nations and settlers) began to rehabilitate the streams. A fight had begun to restore the salmon. The film introduces enclaves within highly urbanized areas where salmon have slowly started to make a comeback. Through an emphasis on rich visuals, it invites us to explore places of beauty in the heart of a city and reflect upon how we live in relation to the natural world. Salmon is an iconic species for people on the West Coast and offers so much in its mythical life cycle and resilience to adversity. Through 5 characters, the importance of rewilding is told. Nature can thrive in an urban setting, enabling citizens to connect with treasured pockets of wilderness and a remarkable, crucial species. In order for this renewal to take hold, issues must be considered regarding how to make space for the natural world a large, contemporary city.
Producer: Freelance
Contact: marina@marinadodis.com
Film Length: 20 minutes
Change From Within
Change From Within is a cross-disciplinary dance film and research project exploring the lack of diversity within the environmental movement, as well as concrete solutions to address these systemic inequities. The piece was filmed in the greater Seattle area, and features the voices of leaders within various sectors of the environmental workforce and their beautifully compelling and vulnerable stories.
Producer: Culture SHIFT & Sustainable Seattle
Contact: j.ramgotra@gmail.com
Film Length: 23 minutes
Shorelines and Salmon
Dive in and immerse yourself among the critical nearshore habitats of the San Juan Islands with this 360 video. Find out why forage fish and juvenile salmon depend on eelgrass beds and bull kelp while watching a group of scientists working on a collaborative restoration project. This 360/virtual reality video is being used in high school science classes in the San Juan Islands as part of our new Immersive Education virtual reality program. Our Marine Science Coordinator brings in 12 Oculus Quest VR headsets to the class for one part of this 5-day program. This video is the first module we have created for this education program. It tells the story of the importance of the San Juan Island nearshore habitat to forage fish, juvenile salmon, and ultimately the Orca. It takes students on an underwater adventure, swimming through kelp beds, over eelgrass meadows, up the Skagit River with salmon – providing them with next to real life experience that prompts them to think critically about the threats and opportunities our shorelines face and exposes them to scientists working in the field to conserve critical habitat.
Producer: San Juan Schools
Contact: Jess@sanjuans.org
Film Length: 6 minutes
Heart of the Fraser
Describes the environmental threats facing the most important reach of the lower Fraser River
Producer: BCIT Rivers Institute
Contact: Ken_Ashley@bcit.ca
Film Length: 45 minutes
The Unknown Sea: A Voyage on the Salish
Hidden amongst the evergreens and Madronas, the timber towns turned tech-centers that make up the northwest coast, there is an inland sea that escaped the eye of all who saw it until very recent times. Set sail with the crew of Orion as they voyage to the heart of the Pacific Northwest’s newly named inland waterway. Glide over and dive under this vibrant ecosystem on a month-long journey on the Salish Sea. This expedition investigates the historical, political and ecological factors that went into the recognition of our newest inland sea. The film creates a sense of place highlighting some of the most iconic species and seascapes of the Salish Sea ecosystem. The Unknown Sea A Voyage on the Salish explores the natural and cultural history of the area through interviews of people deeply connected with the Salish Sea.
Producer: Freelance
Contact: shawnecee@gmail.com
Film Length: 32 minutes
Right over the Edge
Producer: Freelance
Contact: shawnecee@gmail.com
Film Length: 65 minutes
Returning
Scientist Rob Butler goes on a journey of the Canadian and American Salish Sea in search of an answer to the question: what would it take for all of us to reconnect with nature?
Producer: Pacific WildLife Foundation
Contact: contact@robbutler.ca
Film Length: 33 minutes
Why is the Salish Sea so rich with life
The Salish Sea is a giant mixing bowl where nutrients from mountains and the deep offshore Pacific are stirred together by tidal currents into life-giving waters. This big sprawling inland sea is a single interconnected body of life, filled with extraordinary wild neighbours.
Producer: Bowen Island Conservancy
Contact: bob.turner7@gmail.com
Film Length: 10 minutes
The Salish Sea – a Single Body of Life
The way that the Salish Sea functions as a single ecosystem has similarities to a single living organism, a tree. This idea builds on the scientific understandings presented in the movie “Why is the Salish Sea so rich with Life?”
Producer: Bowen Island Conservancy
Contact: bob.turner7@gmail.com
Film Length: 7 minutes
The Path Home
Pink Salmon returning to their native river to spawn, accompanied by a Jamestown S’Klallam tribal story of how the salmon got their hook noses.
Producer: John Gussman
Contact: jgussman@dcproductions.com
Film Length: 6 minutes
State of the Sound 2021
People care about Puget Sound. We know what we need to do to create a healthy and resilient Sound, for us and future generations.
Producer: Puget Sound Partnership
Contact: jon.bridgman@psp.wa.gov
Film Length: 6 minutes
Kelp Lifeways
Kelp forests are a valuable coastal habitat in temperate areas throughout the world. Bull kelp, Nereocystis luetkeana, is an iconic foundation species on the West Coast, forming extensive forests in nearshore, rocky habitats. These large, fast-growing kelps create forage and refuge habitat for a diversity of marine life, contributing greatly to the productivity and biodiversity of coastal marine ecosystems. This short film showcases some of the beautiful and endangered kelp forests in the Salish Sea.
Producer: Puget Sound Restoration Fund
Contact: jodie@restorationfund.org
Film Length: 18 minutes
Plastic Free Salish Sea
With our video Plastic Free Salish Sea we hope to connect with other marine resources committees in the USA as well as Canada to create ideas to reduce and reuse single use plastics. We are developing a website that might serve as a one-stop-shop for all events and activities r/t single use plastics around the Salish Sea to create the greatest wave of change.
Producer: San Juan County Marine Resources Committee
Contact: krk@comprehensive-healthcare.com
Film Length: 20 minutes
Tuesday April 26
Speed Networking: 1:00pm – 1:30pm
Tuesday April 26
Networking: Affinity Groups: 3:15pm – 3:45pm
Tuesday April 26
Networking: Track-based: 3:15pm-3:45pm
Wednesday April 27
Speed Networking: 1:00pm – 1:30pm
Wednesday April 27
Networking: Affinity Groups: 3:15pm – 3:45pm
Thursday April 28
Speed Networking: 11:45am-12:15pm
Discussion Guide for Networking