OMRN National Conference 2009 - Canada's Oceans:
Research, Management and the Human Dimension
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October 21 to October 24, 2009 -
Desmarais Multidisciplinary Building
University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario
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Post Conference Update | July 2010
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Links to Conference Related Documents
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Please click here to view the OMRN Communications Strategy Report.
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Please click here to view the OMRN White Paper.
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Please click here to view the OMRN Futures Survey.
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Please click here to view the Report and Synthesis: Special Session on Identification of Social and Cultural Values in Support of Integrated Ocean Management.
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Post Conference Update | January 2010
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2009 OMRN National Conference Postscript
The 5th Annual Ocean Management Research Network (OMRN) National Conference, titled Canada's Oceans: Research, Management and the Human Dimension, was once again a great success. The four day conference, 21st – 24th October 2009, held at the Telfer School of Management, focused on the management of Canada’s coasts and oceans by integrating research and policy, social science and natural science, and the human dimension into natural resource management. There were over 250 conference delegates in attendance, representing a diverse gathering of researchers, managers, policymakers, students, NGOs, industry, consultants and others with a keen interest in Canada’s oceans.
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The objective of the OMRN 2009 National Conference was to learn about research and policy affecting Canada’s oceans. This was achieved through a series of Conference Dialogue Sessions and Conference Presentation Sessions where the conference themes, Ocean’s Accountability, Ocean’s Governance, and Canada’s Arctic, were presented and discussed by delegates. Topics included, but were not limited to: International Fisheries Governance; Climate Change; Property Rights in Fisheries; Coastal Community Health; Coastal Communities Engaged in Coastal Management; Arctic Governance; Aboriginal Traditional Knowledge; Marine Protected Areas Network Creation; Fisheries & Aquaculture; Linking Science and Technology; Adaptive Co-Management in the Arctic; and Socio-Economics of Integrated Management.
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There were several special events during the four day conference. On day one, The Honourable Gail Shea, Minister Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) addressed delegates welcoming them to the 5th annual conference. On day two, keynote speaker Dr. Ron O’Dor, Senior Scientist at the Census of Marine Life, Consortium for Ocean Leadership, Washington, DC, gave a fascinating presentation titled, The Transparent Ocean, on the abilities of scientist with the Ocean Tracking Network to successfully and accurately track marine life and what this means for conservation of the marine environment. Other events included a Pre-conference Forum hosted by DFO Oceans; the screening of The End of the Line, an award winning film about responsible seafood choices; and a Poster Session Reception where student delegates displayed their research though posters and personal photographs. The conference came to a close with a special ‘OMRN Futures’ session where the direction of the OMRN was discussed openly among conference delegates and network members.
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Please click here to view the OMRN Post Conference Photo Journal, highlighting some of the key events during the conference.
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Conference Overview
The OMRN 2009 National Conference, as for past OMRN conferences, focuses on the management of our coasts and oceans by integrating research and policy, social science and natural science, and the human dimension into natural resource management. OMRN conference delegates represent a diverse gathering of researchers, managers, policymakers, students, NGOs, industry, consultants and others with an interest in our oceans.
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The objective of the OMRN 2009 National Conference is to learn about research and policy affecting our oceans. This goal is reflected in the title of all of the OMRN's Conferences - Canada's Oceans: Research, Management and the Human Dimension. The title captures the recognized need to include insights from studies of the human dimension, alongside the natural sciences, in ocean policy and management and in implementing the Oceans Act, Canada's Ocean Strategy and the Oceans Action Plan. The 2009 National Conference will place a particular emphasis on three themes:
- Oceans Governance:
tools for integrated management including ecosystem-based management approaches; the Health of the Oceans (HOTO) initiative; the impact of MPAs on the ecosystem and the human system; the implications on oceans management of the Species at Risk Act (2004), and invasive species considerations; oceans governance and participatory decision-making; management of multiple marine activities including fisheries, transportation, and coastal zone planning; and training and academic programming to contribute to integrated management.
- Canada's Arctic:
adaptation and resilience in the face of environmental and climate change; the effects of climate change on natural resources; disaster preparation and management in the North due to erosion and storm surge; traditional ecological knowledge (TEK); social networks in the North and participatory governance; training and academic programming to contribute to developing Northern management capacity; alternative sources of energy; Northern surveillance and security requirements and analysis; marine transportation in the North and the threat of pollution.
- Oceans' Accountability:
the biophysical accounting, and the attributed economic, social, and continent value of oceans activities and resources using direct and contingent evaluation techniques including establishing oceans’ and coastal community inventories of resources, infrastructure, and human resources; methods and tools for the dynamic, longitudinal analysis and evaluation of the health and status of Canada’s oceans from a systems dynamics perspective and including ecosystem as well as social, economic, and cultural oceans analysis (SECOA), training.
