OASeS 2024 Symposium

The second biennial OASeS Symposium was held on May 14-16, 2024 at the Rainforest Arts Center in Forks, Washington. A link to the agenda is provided below.

OASeS 2024 Symposium Registration

The second biennial OASeS Symposium will take place on May 14-16, 2024 at the Rainforest Arts Center in Forks, Washington. This event is open to the public and will convene OASeS steering committee members, resource managers, tribal members, researchers, educators, students, and more to focus on changing ocean conditions on the Olympic Coast. A meeting agenda and more information will be shared in the near future. Please register by April 19, 2024 to attend. If you missed the 2022 Symposium, there is a link to the summary below.

Cool Webstories to Check Out

Check out two new webstories! The first, focused on changing ocean conditions in the California Current. This webstory was developed as part of a collaborative ocean acidification communications project between the Aquarium Conservation Partnership, the OA Alliance, and NOAA’s Ocean Acidification Program. The second webstory focuses on kelp forests in the North Pacific, including a Washington coast regional story! This ocean literacy campaign is working to raise awareness about the importance of kelp forests in the North Pacific ecosystem.

OASeS Seeks Community-At-Large Representatives

The Olympic Coast Ocean Acidification Sentinel Site is seeking two Community-At-Large representatives to serve in a two-year term on the OASeS Steering Committee. Apply by October 31, 2023.
Photo: Second Beach at sunset. Photo credit: Matt McIntosh/NOAA

OASeS 2022 Symposium

The first biennial OASeS Symposium was convened in May 2022, bringing together nearly 100 people, in person and remotely, in Ocean Shores, Washington. Attendees included OASeS steering committee members, resource managers, tribal members, researchers, educators, students, and members of the public. The first day of the Symposium was focused on management and policy actions and needs. The second day was focused on research findings and science needs as well as education and outreach efforts related to OA. The symposium provided a gathering station for a diversity of voices to share information and emergent research, generate solutions, and address work plan actions related to the needs of the region regarding the changing ocean conditions. OASeS plans to host biennial symposia on the outer coast.

2022 Annual Accomplishments Report

OASeS has released their 2022 Annual Accomplishments Report, highlighting key achievements over the past calendar year. Accomplishments include hosting the first biennial Ocean Acidification Sentinel Site Symposium on the Washington coast, development of the OASeS website, and strengthening partnerships.

Award for Northern California Current Ecosystem Research

NOAA has awarded $967,505 of an anticipated four-year, $4.2 million project to support research on multi-stressor impacts on marine ecosystems under climate change. The newly funded project, led by Oregon State University and NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory, will occur off the coasts of northern California, Oregon, and Washington, including NOAA’s Olympic Coast National Marine Sanctuary, and will focus on climate impacts to Dungeness crab, an iconic and valuable fishery resource that is culturally and economically important to the region’s coastal communities.

Empowering Coastal Indigenous Communities

NANOOS, AOOS, and PacIOOS are collaborating with Sofar Ocean Technologies and coastal Indigenous partners in each region on a community-led ocean observing project funded by the NFS Convergence Accelerator program. Backyard Buoys uses simple and affordable instruments, called "Spotters", to put access to and stewardship of ocean data in the hands of those most affected by climate change on the coast.