Come be part of the blue vision! From May 20-23, I, along with many of my colleagues and other marine community leaders, will be in attendance at the Blue Vision Summit 3 in Washington, D.C. NRDC is a proud co-sponsor of the event, the goal of which is to celebrate the ocean, discuss the challenges it faces and solutions to those challenges. Please show your commitment and come join us!
The summit kicks off Friday night, May 20, with a “Celebration of the Seas”, an evening of ocean-themed art held at the Carnegie Institution of Science. The celebration is free to the public and promises to be fun, with something for everyone: live music and dance performances; screenings of the documentaries SOLA: Louisiana Water Stories and This Is Your Ocean: Sharks; and a panel of five authors—Barton Seaver, Susan Casey, David Helvarg, Steve Palumbi, and Carl Safina—who help tell the oceans’ stories. There’s also a silent auction for great prizes and original artwork.
Friday’s celebration is just the beginning of a weekend full of engaging events. Saturday and Sunday the conference moves to the Marin Center, where panels and plenary sessions will discuss solutions that will help protect the oceans. Saturday morning’s plenary sessions are devoted to BP Oil Spill, the effects of which we’re only just beginning to understand. One session will feature Gulf Coast residents discussing their restoration efforts. In another, leading federal authorities will explain what they’ve been doing to address the disaster. That afternoon, NRDC will moderate a workshop on the issue of ocean acidification. The evening will conclude on a celebratory note with the Peter Benchley Oceans Awards, highlighting achievements that have been instrumental in protecting our oceans.
Then on Sunday, there will be a panel, including Senators Sheldon Whitehouse, that will discuss the virtues of our new national ocean policy, a conversation that will continue in a subsequent plenary on the benefits of planning in our marine and coastal areas. Later that afternoon, others will talk about confronting “ocean deficit disorder” in today’s youth and other topics.
Numerous other panels over the weekend will tackle topics such as the future of fish and seafood, ocean-related jobs, marine plastic pollution, marine wilderness areas, offshore energy, and even how religious groups might be important allies in the fight for healthier oceans. One panel will highlight artists, continuing the theme of Friday’s celebration.
The weekend isn’t just about policy, art, science, and education, however—it’s about action. We need to demonstrate the necessity of a healthy ocean, so on Monday, Blue Vision Summit participants will have a chance to meet with Congressional representatives and their staff to talk about ocean issues, as part of Capitol Hill Ocean Day. This is an opportunity for marine leaders to come together and show that the public is engaged and seeking positive change.
For more about Blue Vision Summit 3, or to register, visit the event website: http://www.bluefront.org/blue_vision_blog/welcome/. We hope to see you there!