2023 IAN Retreat at Horn Point Laboratory

On June 12, IAN held its annual retreat at Horn Point Laboratory, attended by IAN staff and the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) web and technical teams. The day started with a fun icebreaker, followed by IAN and CBP detailing their respective roles in an effort to increase collaboration across both teams. The first breakout session continued this topic by discussing collaboration between IAN, the CBP Technical Team, and the CBP Web Team in the context of the Chesapeake Bay Report Card. We discussed strategic planning, DEIJ (diversity, equity, inclusion, and justice), and IAN’s future in the Chesapeake Global Collaboratory. We also welcomed Essala Lowe (UMCES VP for Administration and Finance), Lois Colaprete (UMCES VP for Advancement), and Dave Nemazie (UMCES Chief of Staff and Executive Director of Government Affairs) for further comments on those topics. The day was then concluded with a brainstorming activity highlighting the various areas that IAN contributes to with its work. Thank you to all who could attend, and we look forward to implementing some of the suggestions we discussed.

Gaining Valuable Perspectives of the Potomac River and Watershed

The Coastal Ocean Assessment for Sustainability and Transformation project (COAST Card) had a productive June month that entailed traveling to various areas of the Potomac Watershed and conducting four different listening sessions. The listening sessions were held in:

  • Alexandria, VA at the Washington Sailing Marina
  • Leonardtown, MD at the Leonardtown Wharf
  • Woodbridge, VA at the Potomac Science Center
  • Cumberland, MD at the Canal Place Heritage Park

Over 100 participants took the time to share their perspectives about the Potomac, including their values and threats to the Potomac and their vision for a sustainable Potomac. The responses will help inform the best indicators to use for assessing the ecosystem health in the area, with the goal of creating a more comprehensive Potomac River and Watershed report card.

Sustainability Research and Innovation Congress in Panama

In the last week of June 2023, Alexandra Fries, Vanessa Vargas-Nguyen, and Bill Dennison attended the 2023 Sustainability Research and Innovation Congress in Panama City, Panama. They presented on several UMCES projects including the Belmont Forum-funded Pacific Ocean Pathways in Support of Sustainable Development (PacPathways) and Coastal Ocean Assessment for Sustainability and Transformation (COAST Card) projects. IAN supported Xin Zhang and Kevin Jackson from Appalachian Lab in playing the Sustainable Agriculture Matrix (SAM) version of the report card game, Get the Grade. IAN also hosted an additional Get the Grade session and a Science Communication Workshop. The Congress was a huge success and it was great to be in-person making connections with old partners and new collaborators.