2012 – Public Policy Forum

Each year, the Consortium for Ocean Leadership hosts a day-long public meeting that facilitates ocean policy discussions with representatives from Congress, the federal agencies, industry and the academic research community.

This day-long meeting is attended by Presidents, Deans and Directors from ocean research and education institutions from around the country, other external stakeholders, and Members of Congress and their staff.  It provides an opportunity for collaboration and discussions on issues of national importance to the ocean advocacy community.

The Science of Ocean, Coastal and Great Lakes Restoration

March 7, 2012
Capitol Visitors Center SVC 210/212
8:30am-5:30pm
Reception : Senate Dirksen Building – Room 50
6pm-8pm

Restoration projects require robust data, extensive observations and the work of innovative researchers, practitioners and policymakers. Science is therefore crucial to managing the successful restoration of our oceans, coasts, and the Great Lakes – and to the success of ocean policy at large. Please join us on March 7th to discuss the essential scientific components of restoration planning, the lessons learned from some national restoration efforts, and the future of Gulf of Mexico restoration.  Our panel of speakers will include noted ocean and coastal scientists, as well as federal representatives and several Members of Congress.  Breakfast and lunch will be provided during the day and a reception will follow the forum 6:00 p.m. until 8:00 p.m.

Click here for the video archives of this event. Photos are located here.

Agenda

(A printable agenda can be found here. Speakers’ biographies can be found here.)

8:30 – Breakfast

8:40 – Opening Remarks – Robert Gagosian, President, Consortium for Ocean Leadership

8:45 – Congressional Speaker – Representative Castor, FL-11

9:00 – Congressional Speaker – Representative Cassidy, LA- 6

9:15 – Panel 1: The role of science in restoration planning

• Moderator – Nancy Rabalais
• Executive Director,  Louisiana Universities Marine Consortium
• Baseline – Steve Murawski, presentation
  
• Research Professor, University of South Florida
• Assessments – Bob Haddad, presentation
• Division Chief,  NOAA’s Office of Response and Restoration
• Monitoring – Bill Boicourt, presentation
• Professor, University of Maryland
• Ecosystem services and role in economic recovery – Anne Guerry, presentation
• Lead Scientist of the Natural Capital Project’s Marine Initiative, Stanford University

10:45 – Break

11:15 – BOEM’s Restoration Activities — Alan Thornhill, presentation

• Chief Environmental Officer, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management

11:45 – Congressional Speaker – Senator Murkowski, AK

12:00 – Lunch

1:15 –  Congressional Speaker – Senator Begich, AK

1:30 – Panel 2: Lessons Learned and Challenges facing other National Restoration Efforts

• Moderator and Great Lakes Panelist – Marie Colton, presentation
• Director, NOAA’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory
• Chesapeake Bay – Rich Batiuk, presentation
• Associate Director of Science, EPA Chesapeake Program Office
• Puget Sound – Curtis Tanner, presentation
• Project Manager, Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project
• Arctic – Fran Ulmer, presentation
• Chair of Arctic Commission

 2:45 – Break

 3:15 – Update on the Gulf of Mexico Research Initiative — Margaret Leinen, presentation

• Associate Provost of Marine and Environmental Initiatives, Florida Atlantic University
  

 3:45 – Congressional Speaker – Senator Whitehouse, RI

 4:00 – Panel 3: The future of restoration: Gulf of Mexico case study

• Moderator – Don Boesch
• President, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science
• NRDA update – David Kennedy, presentation
  
• Assistant Administrator, NOAA’s NOS
• Executive Branch activities – John Hankinson,  presentation
• Executive Director, Gulf Coast Ecosystem Restoration Task Force
• Extramural Gulf restoration research– R. Eugene Turner, presentation
• Professor, Louisiana State University

5:15 – Robert Detrick, NOAA’s OAR Assistant Administrator, presentation

5:45 – Closing Remarks – Robert Gagosian, President, Consortium for Ocean Leadership

6:00 – Reception – Honorary Host: Senator Begich, AK (location Senate Dirksen, room 50)

Travel Information

Information on the Capitol Visitor Center and Transportation options can be found here. 

Information on the Senate Dirksen Building including Maps and Transportation options can be found here.

Check back often for updates.

Past Public Policy Forums:

• 2011:  View the 2011 Public Policy Forum Summary Report.  Click here for photos from the event.

• 2010: This forum was focused around the President’s impending National Ocean Policy and offered a valuable opportunity to engage in dialogue with speakers on the three panels: Sea-Level Rise, the Arctic, and Marine Spatial Planning. View the 2010 Public Policy Forum Summary Report (in Adobe PDF format). Click here for photos from the event.