Webinar Series
The National Marine Sanctuaries Webinar Series provides educators, students, and the interested public with educational and scientific expertise, resources and training to support ocean and climate literacy. This series generally targets formal and informal educators that are engaging students (elementary through college) in formal classroom settings, as well as members of the community in informal educational venues (e.g. after school programs, science centers, aquariums, etc.). However, the series is open to anyone interested in the topics listed below.
For distance learning programs about marine mammals and other protected species in the wild, please visit our Wildlife Viewing Guidelines and the NOAA Fisheries Office of Protected Resources' Marine Life Viewing Guidelines to ensure you are aware of the regulations.
Upcoming Webinars
Fostering Coral Science in Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary
Dr. Nancy Foster Scholars: Amanda Croteau, California State University, Sacramento and Philip Yang, University of Rhode Island
February 12, 2025 at 2:30 pm Hawaii / 4:30 pm Pacific / 6:30 pm Central / 7:30 pm Eastern
Join two NOAA Dr. Nancy Foster Scholars studying coral habitats from shallow to mesophotic depths in Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Discover how their science on historic coral carbon chemistry and present environmental baselines can help inform and guide sanctuary management decisions as we try to help these critical ecosystems remain resilient to a changing climate. Learn all about coral cores and benthic landers, and how you can study coral ecosystems too!
Coral Reef Revival: New Solutions for a Changing Ocean
Dr. Keisha Bahr, Chair for Coral Reef and Ocean Health, Harte Research Institute for Gulf of Mexico Studies
February 19, 2025 at 2:30 pm Hawaii / 4:30 pm Pacific / 6:30 pm Central / 7:30 pm Eastern
Coral reefs are in crisis, but we’re not giving up! From citizen science tools to ocean alkalinity solutions, we’re tackling the threats head-on. Come discover the exciting new techniques we’re exploring to help slow the decline of these vital ecosystems.
Sea Otters in Washington State: Lessons Learned from the "Grand Experiment" of the Maritime Fur Trade
Jessie Hale, PhD, Postdoctoral Fellow with the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, in support of NOAA Fisheries
February 25, 2025 at 3 pm Hawaii / 5 pm Pacific / 7 pm Central / 8 pm Eastern
Sea otters historically occurred off the outer coast of Washington State until 1911 when the last sea otter was reported to have been shot. Sea otters were absent from Washington State until 1969 and 1970, when 59 sea otters were translocated from Alaska. This “grand experiment” of the maritime fur trade throughout the North Pacific, including in Washington, has provided researchers with a unique opportunity to study sea otter populations by comparing areas where otters are absent versus areas in varying stages of recovery. While the maritime fur trade undeniably devastated sea otter populations, it is unlikely that we would know as much about sea otter ecology and biology if it had not occurred. Through long-term study, we have witnessed the recovery of remnant and reintroduced sea otter populations in a variety of habitat types and geographies. The unique ability to study sea otter population recovery in this array of contexts has allowed for synthesis of data from many studies and regions, leading to a more comprehensive understanding of consistencies and differences across sea otter populations, and ultimately the drivers of sea otter population dynamics. Dr. Jessie Hale will describe the history of sea otters in Washington State, including the translocation of sea otters back to Washington, and what we have learned since then about their population dynamics, foraging ecology, spatial ecology, and more.