OpenChannels News Archives

The State of the California Central Coast public symposium has been announced for February 27^th to March 1^st, 2013 in Monterey, California. Registration is now open, and the symposium is currently calling for abstracts. Registration will be open through November 27^th, but the deadline to submit abstracts is September 30^th. Full details are in the attached PDF.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has announced the creation of the Oceans Compact, which "sets out a strategic vision for the UN System to deliver more coherently and effectively on its oceans-related mandates, consistent with the Rio+20 outcome," according to the Secretary-General. More information on the Oceans Compact may be found by following either of the links below.

The Ocean Health Index, an analysis lead by Dr. Ben Halpern with the aid of 65 other experts, signals a new way of thinking about our relationship with the ocean. The Index is the first comprehensive, annual assessment of the benefits that a healthy ocean provides through 10 goals, which emphasize the human-ocean relationship. The global score of 60/100 indicates that our relationship with the ocean is unsustainable.

The North Pacific Fishery Management Council has submitted proposed amendments for essential fish habitats (EFH) to the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). The EFH areas include Groundfish of the Bering Sea and Aleutian Islands Management Area; Groundfish of the Gulf of Alaska; Bering Sea/Aleutian Islands King and Tanner Crabs; Scallop Fishery off Alaska; and Fish Resources of the Arctic Management Area.

Full details are in the attached PDF from the Federal Register.