The Fourth Annual Meeting of the Mid-Atlantic Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association
Filed under: Discovery,Events,Meetings,News & Resources
November 17 and 18, 2009
Renaissance Portsmouth Hotel and Waterfront Conference Center, Portsmouth, Virginia
The Mid-Atlantic Coastal Ocean Observing Regional Association (MACOORA) is proud to host Understanding the Coastal Ocean: Partnerships for a Changing World. Our meeting will focus on critical partnerships as we navigate through a changing ocean/climate environment, a growing coastal society, and diverging research and information needs. Our meeting venue is the Renaissance Hotel overlooking the Elizabeth River, where we will also host our first Exhibition featuring industry, NGO and partner organizations. An evening event at the Virginia Sports Hall of Fame will offer further opportunities for networking. We anticipate a diverse audience of users, state and federal agencies, and businesses.
November 17, 2009
The meeting will open with the plenary session entitled Visions of the Changing Ocean, featuring Bob Gagosian, President and CEO of Ocean Leadership, and Jack Dunnigan, NOS Assistant Administrator. Robert Tudor, Deputy Executive Director of the Delaware River Basin Commission, will moderate a panel highlighting State Partnerships. Invited speakers from the Massachusetts Ocean Partnership, Coastal States Organization, The Nature Conservancy and others will discuss issues critical to the states in the Mid-Atlantic. A second panel on Industry Partnerships will be moderated by Jay Titlow of Weatherflow, Inc. and will highlight industry/IOOS partnerships with invited speakers from Fugro Atlantic, the Marine Spill Response Corporation and wind energy companies. An extended Industry Panel, Maritime Industry Partnerships, moderated by Ed Kelly, Executive Director of the Maritime Association of the Port of NY/NJ will host the VA Maritime Association and others. The focus of a third panel, Federal Partnerships , moderated by Tony Siebers of the National Weather Service, will address key business lines of coastal inundation and climate change, water quality, maritime safety, ecological decision-making and offshore wind.
November 18, 2009
The morning opening plenary, Mid-Atlantic Ocean Observations: Future Directions, will feature the national IOOS office and its director, Zdenka Willis, and the national regional associations director, Josie Quintrell. A second plenary, the Mid-Atlantic Forum, will feature Troy Hartley, director of Virginia Sea Grant.
We are holding two consecutive workshops. DMAC De-Mystified, led by Eoin Howlett of ASA Inc. will explain in understandable terms the complex and highly sophisticated techniques utilized in data management and communications in ocean observations. Outreach and Education, led by Fredrika Moser and Jeff Yapalater of the Freeport Tuna Club, will offer practical advice about user/stakeholder engagement and public outreach, web development and connecting with users.
Registration is now open, and online, at www.macoora.org.
For more information, please contact Liz Smith, exsmith [at] odu [dot] edu , 757-683-5842 or Judith Krauthamer, judith [dot] krauthamer [at] macoora [dot] org , 410-461-5017.
