OpenChannels Weekly Update Archives

For the week of 18 November 2019

Please join us Wednesday, January 15, 1 pm US EST/10 am US PST/6 pm UTC for a webinar on Defining and Using Evidence in Conservation Practice with Nick Salafsky of Foundations of Success.

Description: There is growing interest in evidence-based conservation, yet there are no widely accepted standard definitions of evidence, let alone guidance on how to use it in the context of conservation and natural resource management practice. In this talk, I will first draw on insights of evidence-based practice from different disciplines to define evidence as being “the relevant information used to assess one or more hypotheses related to a question of interest.” I then present a typology of different kinds of information, hypotheses, and evidence and show how these different types can be used in different steps of conservation practice. In particular, it is important to distinguish between specific evidence used to assess project hypotheses and generic evidence used to assess generic hypotheses. I next build on this typology to develop a decision tree to support practitioners in how to appropriately use available specific and generic evidence in a given conservation situation. Finally, I conclude with a discussion of how to better promote and enable evidence-based conservation in projects and across the discipline of conservation, including the development of different types of shared evidence libraries.

Co-Sponsors: OCTO (OpenChannels, The Skimmer, MPA News, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar264

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

Thank you for being part of the OpenChannels Community,
    – Allie Brown, Raye Evrard, and the rest of the OpenChannels Team

For the week of 11 November 2019

Please join us Tuesday, December 10, 1 pm US EST/10 am PST/6 pm UTC for a webinar on The Art of Knowledge Exchange – Lessons from World Bank Experience and Applications for Marine Conservation with Phil Karp, Principal Knowledge Management Officer with the World Bank's Social/Urban/Rural Development and Resilience Global Practice.

Description: Knowledge exchange, or peer-to-peer learning, is a powerful way to share, replicate, and scale up practical solutions to challenges and transform ideas into action. But designing and executing knowledge exchange to achieve intended results and integrating it as part of larger change processes remains challenging. Using its extensive experience in knowledge exchange, the World Bank has developed a systematic framework and guide to help practitioners be more effective knowledge providers, brokers, and recipients. This webinar will present the five-step framework, introduce a range of knowledge exchange instruments and activities, and discuss how this approach can be applied to marine ecosystem conservation. It will also look at the impact and implications of social media and citizen science.

Co-Sponsors: NOAA National MPA Center and OCTO (MPA News, OpenChannels, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar263

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

Thank you for being part of the OpenChannels Community,
    – Allie Brown, Raye Evrard, and the rest of the OpenChannels Team

For the week of 04 November 2019

Please join us Tuesday, December 3, 1 pm US EST/10 am PST/6 pm UTC for a webinar on Improving your impact: Guidelines for doing science that influences policy and management with Jon Fisher of The Pew Charitable Trusts.

Description: Scientists devote substantial time and resources to research to help solve environmental problems. And managers and policy makers must decide which actions will lead to desired environmental outcomes, based on the best-available evidence. Yet decision-makers frequently do not use much of this evidence. They may be unaware of it, lack access to it, not understand it, or view it as irrelevant. As a result, research intended to be applied often remains unused. In this webinar we outline a set of practical steps to improve the impact of science on decision making. These steps were developed from a review of the scientific literature on this topic and the input and experiences of numerous professionals in the field. The steps can be challenging to implement but should translate into science being used to inform environmental and conservation decisions more frequently. We will leave time for and welcome discussion and feedback from webinar participants.

Co-Sponsors: OCTO (OpenChannels, The Skimmer, MPA News, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar262

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

Thank you for being part of the OpenChannels Community,
    – Allie Brown, Raye Evrard, and the rest of the OpenChannels Team

For the week of 28 October 2019

Please join us Thursday, November 7, 2 pm US EST/11am US PST/7 pm UTC for a webinar on Making Marine and Coastal Protected Areas Climate Savvywith Eric Mielbrecht of EcoAdapt and Sara Hutto of the Greater Farallones Association.

Description: Making climate change adaptation planning simple and feasible for managers, The Climate Adaptation Toolkit for Marine and Coastal Protected Areas is a new resource consisting of a complement of tools that support climate vulnerability assessment, adaptation planning, and implementation. Users are supported by essential tools including a library of over 100 curated adaptation actions organized by habitat type and climate impact, each supported by case studies and documents from CAKEx.org, and the North American Marine Protected Area Rapid Vulnerability Assessment Tool. The toolkit is particularly effective as it was co-created with MPA managers and experts from Canada, Mexico and the U.S., working in concert with EcoAdapt, the Greater Farallones Association, and the Commission for Environmental Cooperation. View the toolkit at https://www.cakex.org/MPAToolkit.

Co-Sponsors: Parks Canada, NOAA National Marine Protected Areas Center, Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP), EcoAdapt, the Climate Adaptation Knowledge Exchange (CAKE), the Greater Farallones Association, and the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, and OCTO (MPA News, OpenChannels, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar261

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

For the week of 21 October 2019

Please join us Thursday, November 14, 1 pm US EDT/10 am PDT/5 pm UTCfor a webinar on Resist, Adapt, or Direct? A decision framework for navigating climate-driven ecological transformations with Gregor Schuurman of the US National Park Service, Wendy Morrison of NOAA, and Carrie Kappel of the University of California Santa Barbara.

Description: In this world of rapid global change, managers often have limited ability to control the ultimate drivers of this change or resist or reverse ecological responses to it. Managers in this ‘brave new world’ face difficult choices as well as important opportunities to influence ecological trajectories at local, regional, and continental scales, as they work along a management spectrum from resisting, to accepting, to actively directing ecological change. Managers need clear concepts and training in navigating ecological transformation (NET) and mechanisms to coordinate transformation management across agencies and management units. The FedNET working group (composed of representatives from federal land management agencies, USGS, and NOAA) is working to help US federal land managers understand, plan for, and respond to ecological transformation to maximize conservation of species, ecosystems, and ecosystem services. The group will develop concepts, frameworks, and training opportunities to help managers navigate the “who, why, where, when, how, and what” of NET and coordinate transformation stewardship across scales. The webinar will: 1) discuss how FedNET is using the decision framework Resist-Accept-Direct (RAD), 2) present related case studies to help federal land managers understand, plan for, and respond to ecological transformation, and 3) facilitate discussion with NOAA colleagues and an Ocean Tipping Points representative on how the RAD framework might be applied to marine fisheries.

Co-sponsors: OCTO (OpenChannels, The Skimmer, MPA News, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar260

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

For the week of 14 October 2019

Please join us Thursday, October 31, 1 pm US EDT/10 am PDT/5 pm UTC for webinar on EcoCast: A dynamic ocean management tool to reduce bycatch and support sustainable fisheries with Elliott Hazen and Heather Welch of NOAA and the University of California Santa Cruz.

Description: Dynamic ocean management (DOM) is emerging as a solution to the challenge of spatially managing species and human activities that are dynamic in space and time. DOM strategies use real-time data on environmental conditions to design management boundaries that rapidly adjust in response to the shifting nature of the ocean and its biodiversity. This webinar introduces the fisheries sustainability tool EcoCast and explores the process of building, validating, operationalizing, maintaining, and forecasting with a dynamic ocean management tool. Join this webinar to learn about some of the challenges, solutions, and considerations of applied dynamic ocean management.

Co-sponsors: OCTO (OpenChannels, The Skimmer, MPA News, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar259

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

Thank you for being part of the OpenChannels Community,
    – Allie Brown, Raye Evrard, and the rest of the OpenChannels Team

For the week of 30 September 2019

Please join us Thursday, November 7, 2 pm US EST/11am US PST/7 pm UTC for a webinar on Making Marine and Coastal Protected Areas Climate Savvywith Eric Mielbrecht of EcoAdapt and Sara Hutto of the Greater Farallones Association.

Description: Making climate change adaptation planning simple and feasible for managers, The Climate Adaptation Toolkit for Marine and Coastal Protected Areas is a new resource consisting of a complement of tools that support climate vulnerability assessment, adaptation planning, and implementation. Users are supported by essential tools including a library of over 100 curated adaptation actions organized by habitat type and climate impact, each supported by case studies and documents from CAKEx.org, and the North American Marine Protected Area Rapid Vulnerability Assessment Tool. The toolkit is particularly effective as it was co-created with MPA managers and experts from Canada, Mexico and the U.S., working in concert with EcoAdapt, the Greater Farallones Association, and the Commission for Environmental Cooperation. View the toolkit at https://www.cakex.org/MPAToolkit.

Co-sponsors: Parks Canada, NOAA National Marine Protected Areas Center, Comisión Nacional de Áreas Naturales Protegidas (CONANP), EcoAdapt, the Climate Adaptation Knowledge Exchange (CAKE), the Greater Farallones Association, and the Commission for Environmental Cooperation, and OCTO (MPA News, OpenChannels, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar257

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

Thank you for being part of the OpenChannels Community,
    – Allie Brown, Raye Evrard, and the rest of the OpenChannels Team

For the week of 23 September 2019

Please join us Thursday October 17, 1pm EST for a webinar on Engaging Diverse Audiences in Marine and Coastal Protection with Josie Spearman of Guana Tolomato Matanzas NERR, Ellen M. Leroy-Reed of Friends of Guana Tolomato Matanzas NERR, Dave Feliz of Elkhorn Slough NERR, Jay Haigler of Diving with a Purpose, and Lauren Swaddell of NOAA Coral Reef Conservation Program.

Description: Managers of coastal and marine protected areas are responsible for places that are important for a wide range of audiences, yet we often come up short in engaging meaningfully with diverse audiences. This webinar will present brief case studies about coastal and marine protected areas and non-profit partners that are working with people from diverse backgrounds to provide opportunities to understand and enjoy our ocean and coasts. Educational initiatives from two national estuarine research reserves (NERRS) -- Guana Tolomato Matanzas (GTM) in Florida and Elkhorn Slough in California -- will be presented. GTM NERR’s educational programs have recently increased their ability to accommodate students and potential visitors with physical, emotional, and intellectual challenges and communities with little or no access to transportation. Elkhorn Slough NERR conducts after school and science mentoring programs, regular school field trips, and subsidized school transportation programs in a region with several predominantly Hispanic communities. Diving with a Purpose (DWP) is working with partners to engage and educate the community-at-large on cultural heritage resources that exist in marine protected areas throughout the US with a focus on the African Diaspora. Finally, the first Knauss (Sea Grant) Fellow from Guam will speak about her experiences.

Co-sponsors: NOAA National MPA Center and OCTO (MPA News, OpenChannels, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar256

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

Thank you for being part of the OpenChannels Community,
    – Allie Brown, Raye Evrard, and the rest of the OpenChannels Team

For the week of 16 September 2019

Please join us Thursday, October 31, 1 pm US EDT/10 am PDT/5 pm UTC for a webinar on EcoCast: A dynamic ocean management tool to reduce bycatch and support sustainable fisheries with Elliott Hazen and Heather Welch of NOAA and the University of California Santa Cruz.

Description: Dynamic ocean management (DOM) is emerging as a solution to the challenge of spatially managing species and human activities that are dynamic in space and time. DOM strategies use real-time data on environmental conditions to design management boundaries that rapidly adjust in response to the shifting nature of the ocean and its biodiversity. This webinar introduces the fisheries sustainability tool EcoCast and explores the process of building, validating, operationalizing, maintaining, and forecasting with a dynamic ocean management tool. Join this webinar to learn about some of the challenges, solutions, and considerations of applied dynamic ocean management.

Co-sponsors: OCTO (OpenChannels, The Skimmer, MPA News, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar255

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

Thank you for being part of the OpenChannels Community,
    – Allie Brown, Raye Evrard, and the rest of the OpenChannels Team

For the week of 09 September 2019

Please join us Wednesday, September 25 at 1 pm US EDT/10 am US PDT/5 pm UTC for a webinar on We’ve Got Chemistry! Leveraging Partnerships and the Ocean Acidification Information Exchange to Advance Ocean Acidification and MPA Science with Julianna Mullen of NERACOOS and the OAInfoExchange.org, Jenny Waddell of Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, Francis Chan of Oregon State University, and Meg Chadsey of Washington Sea Grant.

[Please note that this webinar will last 1.5 hours.]

Description: Marine protected areas (MPAs), sanctuaries, and reserves offer refuge to a wide variety of marine species, but can they also protect vulnerable organisms from the effects of ocean acidification (OA) and other climate-related stressors? Increasingly, OA scientists and MPA managers are working together to explore questions of adaptability in marine protected areas to explore this question and sharing their ideas on a dynamic new online platform called the OA Information Exchange (OAIE). In this webinar, we will: 1) provide an orientation to the OAIE to the MPA community and other new users, 2) describe how innovative collaborations between researchers and volunteer scientists are advancing both OA and MPA science in the Oregon Marine Reserves, and 3) provide examples of efforts to document changing ocean conditions and understand potential impacts of ecosystem change in Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, including how the development of a sentinel site for ocean acidification on the Olympic Coast supports OA coordination and collaboration in Washington. [Please note that this webinar will last 1.5 hours.]

Co-sponsors: NOAA National MPA Center and the NOAA Ocean Acidification Program with OCTO (MPA News, OpenChannels, EBM Tools Network)

Register Here: https://oct.to/Webinar254

If you would like to check out other upcoming OCTO sponsored webinars, you can find a complete list at https://oct.to/Webinars.

Thank you for being part of the OpenChannels Community,
    – Allie Brown, Raye Evrard, and the rest of the OpenChannels Team