ADDENDUM … This blog was posted three weeks ago on Christmas Day, and since that time I have received extreme praise as well as extreme condemnation. I was striving for neither of these reactions. For those people who felt that this parody was in poor taste or felt that it was an affront to them, I apologize. It was intended as a whimsical parody of a holiday favorite.

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As part of our collaborative Harbor School project with the Billion Oyster Project--Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM) team, I visited the New York Aquarium in December 2014, two years following the devastation of Hurricane Sandy. The Aquarium is run by the Wildlife Conservation Society who also run four New York City zoos (Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Queens Zoo and Prospect Park Zoo).

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As part of the 2nd International Ocean Research Conference entitled 'One Planet One Ocean', I had the opportunity to travel around Barcelona. This was my first trip to Catalonia and Barcelona and I found it to be a fascinating city with amazing things to see, eat and drink. I will highlight some of the features of this vibrant coastal metropolis.

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This is a continuation of my blog on the several themes that emerged at the 2nd International Ocean Research Conference, entitled ‘One Planet One Ocean’. Oceanic plastics. The realization that 28 million pieces of plastic enter the ocean every day was staggering.

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There were several themes that emerged at the 2nd International Ocean Research Conference, entitled ‘One Planet One Ocean’. The status and future of oceanic fisheries were a major theme, both with plenary speakers and in panel discussions. Another theme was the emerging threat of plastics in the ocean, both the macroplastics that form floating ‘garbage patches’ in the oceanic gyres and the nano and microplastics being discharged from human activities.

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As part of the 2nd International Ocean Research Conference in Barcelona, Spain, Lynne Shannon (University of Cape Town) and I organized a pre-conference workshop on ecosystem indicators. This workshop proved to be a valuable opportunity to explore the development and use of ecosystem indicators. The workshop summary is as follows: How is your ecosystem doing? Advances in the use and understanding of ecosystem indicators workshop … Conveners:

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I attended the 2nd International Ocean Research Conference entitled 'One Planet One Ocean' in Barcelona, Spain 16-21 Nov 2014. I was a co-organizer for a workshop 'How is your ecosystem doing? Advances in the use and understanding of ecosystem indicators' and presented an invited talk, 'Science communication strategies and environmental report cards for effective coastal ocean governance'. The conference and workshops were over a six-day period, and five plenary talks were presented.

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One of the interesting things that came out of attending the 17th Annual International Riversymposium was the opportunity to learn about several new relevant books. Last year at the 16th Annual International Riversymposium , I launched the IAN Press eBook 'Dancing with Dugongs: Having fun and developing a practical philosophy for environmental teaching and research' that I co-authored with the late Peter Oliver.

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The 7th biennial Education and Science Forum sponsored by the National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration Educational Partnerships Program (NOAA-EPP) was held on the beautiful campus of the University of Maryland Eastern Shore (UMES) during some spectacular autumn weather (Oct 24-26).

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I was asked by Mike DeLuca from Rutgers University to present a plenary talk at the annual gathering of the National Association of Marine Laboratories (NAML), which was held jointly with the Organization of Biological Field Stations (OBFS) at the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, MA. The meeting was titled 'Windows to the World: Networking field stations and marine labs to address environmental change'. OBFS-NAML 2014 Joint Meeting - Windows to the World:

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