SUSTAINABLE
OCEANS
Local Ripples, Global Waves
Learn from world-changing thinkers and innovators in the Marine Affairs community
Sustainable Oceans is the annual conference organized by Master of Marine Management students of the Marine Affairs Program at Dalhousie University, and is supported by the Sobey Fund for Oceans. This year, the ninth annual conference will take place on Friday, September 25th and Saturday the 26th, hosted on Zoom, and based out of Halifax, NS on the ancestral and unceded territory of the Mi’kmaq.
The conference will explore the theme of Local Ripples, Global Waves, bringing together a diverse audience of students, faculty, members of the marine community, and the public.
Our Speakers
We are proudly collaborating with the following individuals as our conference keynote and discussion panel
Keynote: Diz Glithero
As an educator, researcher, adjunct professor, and consultant, Diz has led community and national projects focused on the intersection of education, environmental stewardship, and civic engagement. In 2017, Diz served as the Education Lead for the Canada C3 Expedition, a 150-day expedition from Toronto to Victoria via the northwest passage. Currently, Diz serves as the national coordinator of the Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition, a research initiative to explore Canadians’ civic relationship with the ocean and establish a national strategy to advance ocean literacy in Canada.
Photo credits: Student on Ice Foundation
Panelist: Stella Bowles
Stella Bowles is a 16 year old environmentalist and public speaker. Her grade 6 science fair project prompted three levels of government to commit 15.7 million dollars to clean up the LaHave River. She is proof one little girl can make a difference and she hopes her story inspires others to take on a cause, to create more positive environmental changes.
Panelist: Gerald Singh
Gerald Singh is a researcher whose interests are primarily situated in the science-policy interface, and focused on understanding the dynamics between social, economic, and environmental dimensions in sustainable development. This focus takes form in the following ways: 1) assessing cumulative anthropogenic impacts on the environment and understanding the consequences to people; 2) determine priority policy actions and plans to achieve specific sustainable development objectives (particularly the Sustainable Development Goals); 3) understand risk and uncertainty in sustainability policy and management.
With expertise in post-secondary education and marine policy, Colleen Turlo currently works with Oceans North on community-based marine conservation initiatives. Her work focuses on engaging communities and communicating with stakeholders to strengthen marine protection in the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans. Colleen spent several years working on sustainable seafood market initiatives, and was an assistant professor at the Korea Maritime and Ocean University in Busan, South Korea. She earned a master’s degree in marine management from Dalhousie University.
Panelist: Colleen Turlo
Sponsors




The Sobey Fund for Oceans is based on a generous and innovative gift from the Donald R. Sobey Foundation. The gift provides support for the development of a conservation legacy for oceans, specifically through the funding of scholarships and work placements. The Sobey Fund for Oceans will provide the strong foundation onto which we aspire to build greater investment into the broader work of both WWF-Canada and Dalhousie's Marine Affairs Program.
The Ocean Tracking Network (OTN) is a global aquatic research, data management and partnership platform headquartered at Dalhousie University in Halifax, N.S. A global community of researchers is using OTN’s infrastructure and analytical tools to track the movements and survival of more than 245 keystone, commercially important and/or endangered species including marine mammals, sea turtles, squid, crab, lobster, and fishes such as sharks, sturgeon, tuna, salmonids and cod. OTN’s mission is to inform the stewardship and sustainable management of aquatic animals by providing knowledge on their movements, habitats and survival in the face of changing global environments.
Oceana Canada was established as an independent charity in 2015 and is part of the largest international advocacy group dedicated solely to ocean conservation. Oceana Canada has successfully campaigned to end the shark fin trade, make rebuilding depleted fish populations the law, improve the way fisheries are managed and protect marine habitat. We work with civil society, academics, fishers, Indigenous Peoples and the federal government to return Canada’s formerly vibrant oceans to health and abundance. By restoring Canada’s oceans, we can strengthen our communities, reap greater economic and nutritional benefits and protect our future.
Dalhousie Univesity's Faculty of Science is pleased to support the Sustainable Oceans Conference 2020 and invest in Dalhousie's Marine Affairs Program.
The Marine Environmental Observation, Prediction and Response Network (MEOPAR) is a national Network of Centres of Excellence, connecting top marine researchers across the country with highly-qualified personnel, partners and communities. MEOPAR aims to fund leading-edge research, train the next generation of marine professionals, and connect research results to real-world solutions.
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