Ocean Networks Canada (ONC) joins the 2023 Coastal Zone Conference (CZC) next week. The national conference for coastal zone management professionals is coming to downtown Victoria–held for the first time in-person since 2019!
This year’s conference theme is “Connecting Canadians with the Coast” and will focus on the increasing importance of building a greater connection to the oceans and coastal zone environments as we address hazards associated with a changing climate and increasing development and resource pressures.
CZC2023 is officially endorsed by the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) (‘Ocean Decade’) led by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission of UNESCO. The UN Ocean Decade seeks to generate ocean science knowledge to reverse the decline of the state of the ocean system and catalyse new opportunities for sustainable development of this massive marine ecosystem.
Explore the ONC sessions and OceanArt installations below!
Monday, June 12
Coastal and Marine Planning, Conservation and Management to Increase Resilience: Improving Data Accessibility in the Ocean Decade
Time & Location: 3 PM, Esquimalt Room
Presenter: Reyna Jenkyns
One of the seven target outcomes of the UN Ocean Decade is an accessible ocean with open and equitable access to data, information and technology and innovation. Reyna Jenkyns, ONC Data Stewardship Manager, will provide an overview of the FAIR, CARE and TRUST principles for data management and their application in the Canadian ocean data context. The presentation is followed by a diverse panel sharing their perspectives on progress, challenges and insights for this Ocean Decade goal.
Learn more about how ONC is supporting Indigenous sovereignty in ocean data.
Ocean music from deep sea data
Time & Location: 3:00 - 4:30 PM, Lecture hall
Presenter: Colin Malloy
Award-winning percussionist and composer Colin Malloy joins CZC for a special 90-minute performance of his 2022 ONC Artist-in-Residency work. Malloy sonifies data from ONC’s Oceans 3.0 Data Portal and pairs with the Caribbean steelpan to explore our relationship with oil and water.
The Artist-in-Residence program is a partnership between ONC and UVic’s Faculty of Fine Arts, open to UVic Fine Arts graduate students working in any visual, written, musical or performance discipline. Meet the 2023 ONC Artist-in-Residence in this feature story.
Tuesday, June 13
Coastal Processes, Hazards, and Risk Management Continuous Surface Bathymetric-Topographic DEM Development along BC Coastal Regions: Approach and Strategies
Time & Location: 10:30 AM, Location TBA
Presenter: Cassandra Bosma
Digital Elevation Models (DEM) are essential inputs for modelling the impact of a tsunami event. ONC Geographic Information Systems (GIS) Specialist Cassandra Bosma will discuss how she and her colleagues collect vast amounts of elevation data, both bathymetry and topography, and integrate it into one continuous surface–in DEMs. These DEMs are then supplied to ONC tsunami modellers to better identify which areas would be impacted by these events.
Coastal Processes, Hazards, and Risk Management Tsunami Hazard Assessment Along British Columbia Coastlines from Local and Distant Coseismic Sources
Time & Location: 10:30 AM, Location TBA
Presenter: Soroush Kouhi
ONC is developing a coastal hazard assessment framework that utilises a two-eyed seeing approach, interweaving Indigenous knowledge with its tsunami and flood hazard modelling services. Join ONC Applied Science Specialists to learn about tsunami hazard/risk assessment projects along the western coast of Canada.
The team simulated tsunami wave propagation and estimated the potential impact on coastal communities in BC by employing high-resolution DEMs and numerical modeling techniques. This comprehensive tsunami hazard assessment paves the way for stronger resilience in BC's western coast communities, safeguarding them from the destructive forces of tsunamis.
Read more about these tsunami hazard assessments.
Wednesday, June 14
Working Together for Coastal and Marine Stewardship Advancing Indigenous Partnerships in Ocean Science for Sustainability
Time & Location: 8:30 - 10 AM, Rm Oak Bay 1
Presenter: Pieter Romer
ONC Indigenous Community Liaison Pieter Romer will discuss Advancing Indigenous Partnerships in Ocean Science for Sustainability (AIPOSS), a UN Ocean Decade endorsed project. The project aims to establish a clear path forward toward tangible Indigenous-led solutions to ocean sustainability, and to improve Indigenous capacity for ocean governance and ocean change resilience. AIPOSS is led by Ken Paul of the Wolastoqey Nation in partnership with ONC and the Ocean Frontiers Institute at Dalhousie University. Learn more.
Providing Connection through Communications
Time & Location: 10:30-11:15 AM, Location TBA
Presenters: Nic Schulz, Rachel Telling, Dwight Owens
How can we use ocean experience to move beyond individuals and create cultural change? Join this session in which we highlight communications projects that reach unique community audiences (and demonstrate large scale and community-targeted reach) and demonstrate a variety of technologies and tools that may be used for communication.
Presenters will share unique experiences and examples that demonstrate the impact of communicating science to community members. And participants will be equipped with new science communication skills and motivated to share their work with Canadians.
Acoustic Turbulence & Flowscapes
Time & Location: Installations to run for the full conference, Location TBA
Presenter: Colton Hash
Explore ocean science from a different perspective with two interactive installations from digital artist Colton Hash. “Acoustic Turbulence”, developed during his residency at ONC as the inaugural ONC Artist-in-Residence in 2019, presents visualizations of underwater noise generated by pollution from large ocean vessels. His new project “Flowscapes” generates a coastal landscape with different patterns of urban development, primarily for stormwater management systems to show how more sustainable patterns of urban development can mitigate storm surges and pollution.
