ORCA presents: Canada’s Ocean Decade newsletter
January 2024 – Issue 10

Canada's Ocean Decade newsletter January 2024(PDF, 11.3 MB)

ORCA 2023 National Meeting Summary Report launched
Introducing new ORCA council member
Help bridge the digital gap in Ocean Sciences: Join a Wikipedia Edit-A-Thon to promote gender equity
Horizon Europe: Strengthening Canada-EU Collaboration
Parks Canada Leads the Creation of Ten New National Marine Conservation Areas by 2025
6th Call for Contributions for Ocean Decade Actions
Delivering the Science We Need for the Ocean We Want: 2024 Ocean Decade Conference
Apply Now for Ocean Frontier Institute's Visiting Fellowship Program
Announcing Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition's Community Grants
Contribute your scientific expertise to the development of Science Advice
Upcoming events
Contact us

ORCA 2023 National Meeting Summary Report launched

The ORCA 2023 National Meeting Summary Report has just been released! The 2023 Meeting was held on June 1-2, 2023, in St. John’s, NL, concurrently with the Canadian Meteorological and Oceanographic Society (CMOS) 2023 Conference and the launch of Ocean Week Canada by the Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition (COLC).

Held under the theme “Together, Let’s Make a Strong Canadian Contribution to the Ocean Decade”, the meeting provided a platform to discuss and advance opportunities for collaborative ocean science, to raise awareness of the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030), and to facilitate the work of Canada’s Ocean Decade Champions and their associated thematic communities of practice.

Read the report to learn more.

Introducing new ORCA council member

We would like to welcome new Council member Dr. Tana Allen, Vice-President (Research) and Professor, Department of Classics, from Memorial University.

As someone who grew up and lives in an ocean community, I have a deep appreciation for the waters that surround us. Given the vital role our oceans play in our lives, we collectively have a responsibility to protect it for future generations. Through this new leadership role with ORCA, I am very interested in learning about what our partners are doing in this space as part of the Ocean Decade. Memorial University’s deep connection to our oceans – particularly the North Atlantic – helps inform and guide many of our research, teaching and learning and public engagement activities. Our university continues to be recognized nationally and internationally as an ocean leader. I look forward to promoting these activities and building partnerships to ensure Memorial and its many partners find solutions to pressing ocean-related issues facing our world.

Help bridge the digital gap in Ocean Sciences: Join a Wikipedia Edit-A-Thon to promote gender equity

Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Ingenium, and the Canadian Commission for UNESCO are collaborating to promote equity, diversity and inclusion in ocean science in the context of the Ocean Decade.

Although women and non-binary persons are under-represented in ocean sciences, their accomplishments are even less represented, in both print media and online. Help bridge this digital gender gap in ocean sciences!

Join a Wikipedia Edit-a-thon to Promote Gender Equity in Ocean Science on February 3rd at 1 pm EST to edit, add, or translate Wikipedia entries for women and non-binary individuals in ocean science. A crash course on Wikipedia editing will be provided, and in turn, participants will be asked to edit for a good cause.

Horizon Europe: Strengthening Canada-EU Collaboration

European Commission's latest research and innovation framework program Horizon Europe fosters opportunities for international collaboration and strengthens the impact of research and innovation in tackling major global challenges. Learn more about Canada's participation in Horizon Europe by visiting the webpage, and send any inquiries to this email address.

Parks Canada leads the creation of 10 new National Marine Conservation Areas by 2025

Parks Canada is leading and supporting the creation of 10 new national marine conservation areas (NMCAs) by 2025. These areas will contribute to Canada’s commitment to the international goal to protect 25% of marine and coastal areas by 2025, and 30% by 2030.

Together with strong Indigenous leadership and close collaboration with other partners, Parks Canada have protected and conserved 5 NMCAs in 6 unique marine regions across British Columbia, Ontario, Quebec and Nunavut. Another 7 proposed sites are in different phases of a feasibility assessment to become an NMCA.

Learn more about the benefits that NMCAs provide to Canada’s coastal and ocean ecosystems and the building blocks necessary to create new ones.

6th Call for Contributions for Ocean Decade Actions

The 6th Call for Decade Actions (No. 06/2023) is currently open until January 31, 2024 and seeks new projects to be nested under one of the 32 existing endorsed programs. Interested parties should complete and submit the relevant online “Request for Endorsement”. Details are available on the Ocean Decade website.

Delivering the Science We Need for the Ocean We Want: 2024 Ocean Decade Conference

Focused on ‘Delivering the Science we Need for the Ocean we Want’, the 2024 Ocean Decade Conference to take place on April 10-12, 2024, in Barcelona Spain. The conference will bring together the global community to celebrate and take stock of action to date on the Ocean Decade, and to set joint priorities for the future.

To strengthen momentum, a strategic ambition setting process, Vision 2030, has been initiated to take stock of current trends, gaps, and user needs, and to identify key targets and milestones to measure progress and enhance collective impact of the Decade.

The Vision 2030 process is coordinated by the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission, in its role as coordinator of the Ocean Decade, and supported by global experts, including Dr. Diz Glithero from the Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition.

The key outcome of the process will be a series of thematic papers and a synthesis report that will be presented and discussed at the 2024 Ocean Decade Conference, following a period of public and governmental consultation in Winter 2024.

Apply now for Ocean Frontier Institute’s Visiting Fellowship Program

The Ocean Frontier Institute (OFI) is currently accepting applications for their Visiting Fellowship Program. The program provides a forum for scholarly knowledge exchange and collaboration among research colleagues, focused on research outcomes that positively impact how we use and manage the ocean.

Visiting Fellowships will be awarded to highly-qualified researchers who intend to conduct innovative, full-time, interdisciplinary and collaborative research. Incoming Visiting Fellows will spend their research stay at Dalhousie University in Halifax, NS or at Memorial University in St. John’s, NL. Outgoing Visiting Fellows will spend their research stay at 1 of OFI's 8 international partners.

This program supports both the continuation of research within ongoing research priority areas and/or the development of new, complementary ocean initiatives aligned with OFI’s research priorities. Learn more and apply by January 15, 2024.

Announcing Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition’s Community Grants

The Canadian Ocean Literacy Coalition (COLC) launched the Ocean Literacy Community Grants program in February 2023, which provides more accessible funding opportunities for community-driven ocean literacy initiatives that are regionally, culturally, and linguistically relevant. COLC has recently announced a call for the Blue Schools Canada (BSC) Experiential Learning Grant (deadline January 15, 2024).

The BSC Experiential Learning Grant is for elementary, middle and high schools that are Blue Schools Canada members looking to support learning opportunities that strengthen understanding, foster connections, and empower community-led marine conservation and climate action.

Contribute your scientific expertise to the development of science advice

The Canadian Science Advisory Secretariat (CSAS) at Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) coordinates scientific peer review on topics related to the DFO mandate.

To ensure a broader range of potential expertise, the Registry for External Science Experts (RESE) has been developed to aid in the selection of experts for participation in the CSAS peer review process. The RESE is a database that serves as a repository of external experts who self-identify as being willing to participate on a volunteer basis in CSAS processes.

Register to contribute your scientific expertise within your areas of scientific study to the development of science advice at DFO. To register for the RESE, please fill out the online form and reach out with any questions.

Upcoming events
Date	Event	Location
January 23-25, 2024	Atlantic Policy Congress of First Nations Chiefs Secretariat (APC) Fisheries Conference and Awards Ceremony	Membertou, NS
February 3, 2024	A Wikipedia Edit-a-thon to Promote Gender Equity in Ocean Science	Ottawa, ON and Virtual
February 8-9, 2024	Celebrating the Success of Women in STEM Symposium: Women, Sustainability and Climate Solutions	Virtual
February 18-23, 2024	2024 Ocean Sciences Meeting*	New Orleans, USA
February 21-24, 2024	Society of Canadian Aquatic Sciences (SCAS) Conference	Fredericton, NB
February 27-29, 2024	The Science & Technology Awareness Network (STAN) Annual Conference ‘Thinking Outside the Box’	Virtual
March 17-22, 2024	7th ICES-PICES International Zooplankton Production Symposium	Tasmania, Australia
April 10-12, 2024	2024 Ocean Decade Conference*	Barcelona, Spain
April 16-18, 2024	Third International Conference on Ecosystem Approach to Management in the Arctic Large Marine Ecosystems Managing Marine Ecosystems in a Rapidly Warming Arctic	Tromsø, Norway
May 27-30, 2024	Canadian Hydrographic Conference (CHC2024) ‘Unveiling our Blue Planet’	St. John’s, NL