Project Information

Title: PWS Natural History Symposium 24220403

Project Year and Number: 2024: 24220403

Other Fiscal Years and Numbers for this Project: 2023: 23220403, 2022: 22220403

Principal Investigator (PI): Paul Twardock (Prince William Sound Stewardship Foundation)

Managing Agency: ADFG

Assisting Personnel: None

Project Website: https://www.princewilliamsound.org/

Research Location: Whittier, Alaska

Restoration Category: Public Info. Science Mgmt. and Administration

Injured Resources Addressed: Not Specified

Abstract:

The Natural History Symposium has been the keystone event of the Prince William Sound Stewardship Foundation (PWSSF) since it began in 2018. The Symposium, which is free to the public and held in mid-May, provides the latest science, research and heritage news by experts from throughout the PWS region. The program responds to a need expressed by tour companies, outfitters and guides, and other educational interests to provide consistent, accurate, and professional training for the guides and other educators that interact with thousands of PWS visitors every year.

Topics include climate change, ocean conditions, impacts of the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill, and other complex and evolving issues. It is also an opportunity for the general public to gain knowledge on important topics affecting the region. In these ways, PWSSF sees the symposium as an investment in responsible use of the Sound, public education, community resilience, and area-wide stewardship, which all connect to the heart of the PWSSF mission. There is currently no other education or science center located in the Whittier harbor. The harbor has been experiencing a large increase in tourists, and recreational and commercial boaters. Hosting the NH Symposium in Whittier is a way for PWSSF to increase awareness of their various projects throughout the PWS and the community.Educational programs like the Symposium can lead individuals to become citizen scientists; engaged, inspired and compelled. The presenters at the Symposium are selected to cover a wide range of topics, but the goal is to educate and advocate for reducing the negative impacts on the Prince William Sound. If the PWS is to continue recovering from the Exxon Valdez oil spill, the public need to be informed on ethical and sustainable ways of recreating. This program will explore and develop methods for encouraging low impact, responsible recreation.

This project was approved for the FY22-FY26 funding cycle.


Proposal: View (441 KB)

Reports: None Available

Publications from this Project: None Available

Resolutions: