In celebration of the Chesapeake Monitoring Cooperative's (CMC) 10th anniversary, Queen Anne's County TV interviewed CMC service providers and produced a news segment on their work. Water monitoring and data accessibility are an important part of keeping the water in the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed clean for all. Click here to check out the video.

Empowering Scientists to Become Better Communicators

Katie May, Alex, and Conor are teaching a science visualization course (MEES 708T) this semester for the Marine Estuarine Environmental Sciences program. Graduate students from UMD, UMES, and UMCES are learning how to effectively visualize their research and getting hands-on experience with many of the software programs professional science communicators use. They are a great group of students doing important research. The principles and skills they are learning will help them share their work through compelling visualizations and storytelling.

Farewell, Annie!

Last month, IAN bid a fond farewell to Science Communicator Annie Carew. Since joining IAN in 2019, Annie has been a crucial part of our team, effectively collaborating with diverse stakeholders and analyzing and translating complex data into compelling stories and visuals. She played a key role in several projects, including the Charles County Climate Adaptation Report Card, the New Caledonia and Fiji Report Cards, and the Maryland Coastal Adaptation Report Card. Annie’s work has spanned the map and made a lasting, positive impact. We are incredibly grateful for her contributions and for the insight and passion she brought to every project. We wish her nothing but the best in her next chapter!

Spanish Happy Hour with Defensores de la Cuenca

On February 25th, IAN hosted Defensores de la Cuenca for a Spanish Happy Hour. Defensores de la Cuenca (Watershed Defenders) is a non-profit focused on connecting Latin@/e communities across the Chesapeake Bay watershed to nature and empowering them to be good environmental stewards through family-friendly events and programs. We had the opportunity to meet some members of their team, learn about their programs, and learn some common environmental terms in Spanish through a fun game. We also discussed strategies and barriers related to community engagement, which provided valuable insights for IAN’s work.

Connecting Maryland Water Monitoring Efforts

On February 26th, water monitoring organizations from across the state gathered in Catonsville, MD for the 18th Maryland Stream Monitoring Roundtable. UMCES facilitated the meeting with support from CMC partners. There were 30 in-person and 80 virtual attendees from non-profits, academia, environmental consulting, and government agencies that shared their stream monitoring plans and site locations for the coming year. Sampling locations from all organizations are mapped by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources: https://eyesonthebay.dnr.maryland.gov/stream/mwmc2026.html. Thank you to all who attended for a wonderful meeting! Connecting stream monitors from all over Maryland helps us find ways to collaborate, stay informed, and support healthy streams for all.