Webinars
Upcoming Webinars
MPA Day 2026: Uniting a Global Community for Ocean Protection
Tuesday, February 10, 10 am US EST/7 am US PST/3 pm UTC/4 pm CET/5 pm EET/5 pm SAST. Presented by: Judy Mann-Lang, Founder of MPA Day, and Katja Laingui, European Coordinator for MPA Day. Description: Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) are essential for conserving biodiversity, supporting sustainable livelihoods, and building climate resilience. MPA Day celebrated on August 1 annually is a coordinated global celebration to amplify collective efforts to protect the ocean. This webinar will highlight the evolution of MPA Day and its growing reach as more regions join in celebrating and promoting the value of MPAs. Judy Mann-Lang will discuss the origin of and motivation for MPA Day and its early growth, based on an understanding of the communication principles that underpin effective MPA management and public engagement. Katja Laingui will outline the steps taken to broaden MPA Day outreach into Europe and foster connections with emerging partners worldwide. Together, the speakers will share practical ways organizations and individuals can participate and help the initiative to grow in reach and impact.
Advancing Ecosystem-Based Marine Spatial Planning Through the MarinePlan Decision Support System
Wednesday, March 18, 10 am US EDT/7 am US PDT/2 pm UTC/3 pm CET. Presented by:Vanessa Stelzenmüller of Thünen Institute of Sea Fisheries. Description: Achieving both conservation and green energy goals demands new approaches that more effectively align marine spatial planning (MSP) with systematic conservation planning. As a forward-looking, integrative process, MSP is uniquely positioned to help deliver sustainable marine futures, especially when grounded in strong ecosystem considerations. Implementing an ecosystem-based approach to MSP (EB-MSP) is therefore essential. This webinar will present a stakeholder-informed Decision Support System (DSS) for EB-MSP developed through the Horizon Europe project MarinePlan (www.marineplan.eu). The DSS offers practical guidance for aligning MSP processes with spatial conservation and restoration priorities. This webinar will introduce core components, including the use of Ecologically or Biologically Significant Marine Areas (EBSAs) as a central driver of conservation planning, as well as standardized guidance for defining planning scenarios aimed at meeting global conservation targets protecting 30% of marine areas, with 10% under strict protection by 2030. Finally, the webinar will compare developed planning scenarios with current MSP practices and discuss key insights. Challenges, opportunities, and areas for improvement within existing governance processes to support more effective implementation of EB-MSP will all be highlighted.
Past Webinars
Finding the Right Tool(s) for Coastal Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment and Adaptation Planning
Many coastal natural resource managers and communities have begun to plan for the impacts of climate change on their local ecosystems and infrastructure. Practitioners are finding it difficult to select tools suited to their needs and capacities, however, because of the wide variety of tools, the difficulty of finding easily-understandable information about tool functions, and the lack of ways to compare different tools (e.g. their functionality, data and training requirements, and strengths and limitations). The EBM Tools Network released a decision guide, Tools for Coastal Climate Adaptation Planning, in early March. The guide provides information on a set of key tools for multi-sector climate-related planning (i.e. planning which incorporates both ecosystem health and human well-being concerns), explains and illustrates the utility and role of tools in planning, and outlines a process for selecting appropriate tools for a projects. This webinar will provide a short overview of resources provided in the guide (tool matrix, other tool information, case studies, etc.) and use the remaining time for answering questions from participants about the guide and incorporating climate change vulnerability assessment and adaptation planning tools into planning processes. A number of tool experts will also be on hand to answer questions about specific tools described in the guide….
Demonstration of Monitoring Resources
MonitoringResources.org, developed by the Pacific Northwest Aquatic Monitoring Partnership, is a suite of tools that helps investigators plan and implement effective, efficient…….
Turning Visitors into Partners: Challenges and Successes at Golden Gate National Recreation Area
Howard Levitt, Director of Communications and Partnerships at Golden Gate National Parks, presented this webinar with the EBM Tools Network and the National MPA Center on 14 March 2013…
Presentation on MSP in the Netherlands by David Goldsborough, Centre for Marine Policy
David Goldsborough is a senior researcher from the Netherlands working on Marine Spatial Planning (MSP) and cross-border marine policy issues on the North Sea…
Thank You Ocean! Building Common Outreach Messages and Strategies through the California Ocean Communicator
Learn how stronger communications networking can increase your MPA program impact.
How Are We Doing? Taking the Pulse of California’s Oceans
Monitoring California’s statewide network of MPAs will produce an unprecedented body of data that will be useful not only to assess the performance of MPAs…
Can You Hear Me Now?: Research and Tools on Ocean Communication
The Ocean Project conducts cutting-edge market research and analysis to help inform outreach and education on ocean issues. Find out what people really think about ocean issues…
Incorporating Ecosystem Services into Assessments of Climate Change Vulnerability and Adaptation
Rising sea levels coupled with population growth along coasts make climate adaptation planning an imperative. The framework of ecosystem services can help managers understand…
Evaluating Conservation and Management Efforts through an Eco-Audit
In an era of diverse and potentially conflicting uses of ocean resources, successful implementation of EBM requires a means to assess ecosystem status and evaluate tradeoffs inherent in the management of ecosystems…
Integrated Ecosystem Assessment for the California Current
In an era of diverse and potentially conflicting uses of ocean resources, successful implementation of EBM requires a means to assess ecosystem status and evaluate tradeoffs inherent in the management of ecosystems….