A special film screening about managing ocean resources in the Great Bear Sea and panel discussion about how local, regional, and national planning efforts are combining to sustain our coastal communities.
Ocean enthusiasts and community members are invited to attend the screening of Green Fire Production’s film, The Great Bear Sea. The film will be followed by a discussion about the New Hampshire Coastal Risk and Hazards Commission Report and the first-in-the-nation Regional Ocean Plan, at the Seacoast Science Center on Tuesday, June 7, at 6:30pm.
Along British Columbia’s north Pacific coast, the Great Bear Sea is a wild expanse of ocean where whales, wolves, bears and humans thrive in rich coastal ecosystems. The Great Bear Sea is also a place where worlds collide – a place full of historic conflicts, emerging struggles over ocean resources, and globally leading solutions. Now, 18 First Nations and the Province of British Columbia have crafted marine plans for the Great Bear Sea to protect marine ecosystems and build sustainable coastal economies.
The Great Bear Sea is the latest film in Green Fire Productions’ award-winning series, Ocean Frontiers. Ocean Frontiers films are screening across the country and around the world to rave reviews. The films leave audiences with sense of hope that change is possible through collaboration and science-based decision making that benefit our ocean and ocean economies.
After the screening, a distinguished panel will discuss planning work. The panel includes Aimee Bushman, Ocean Planning Outreach Manager, Conservation Law Foundation; Peter Britz, Conservation Commission Environmental Planner, Portsmouth, NH; Ted Diers, Watershed Management Bureau, NH Department of Environmental Services; Cliff Sinnott, Executive Director at Rockingham Planning Commission, NH; and David Watters, Senator, NH District 4. The discussion will be moderated by Wendy Lull.
You’ll learn about the draft Northeast Regional Ocean Plan, recently released for public review, and the New Hampshire Coastal Risks and Hazards Commission Report, released on April 1st.
A public meeting on the Commission Report will be held at the Seacoast Science Center on June 1st at 7pm.
Wendy Lull, President of the Seacoast Science Center, said, “We are proud to host New Hampshire’s premier screening of The Great Bear Sea. As a non-profit marine science education organization, we want everyone to understand that a healthy ocean drives our quality of life. As so beautifully shown in the film, no matter where you live, what you do every day influences the health of the ocean, and ocean health impacts our daily lives—from weather, to what we eat, where we live and how we play. The Great Bear Sea heralds a new era of stewardship, and we hope you will join us for the film, for the discussion, and for the future of our seacoast and sea.”
This event is hosted by the Seacoast Science Center, a member of the New England Ocean Action Network, a diverse group of organizations, individuals, and industries working together to promote new approaches to ocean management in our region based on collaboration, cooperation and sound science, and by the Blue Ocean Society for Marine Conservation, Conservation Law Foundation, Green Fire Productions, Gulf of Maine Marine Education Association, The Gundalow Company, New Hampshire Community Seafood, Shoals Marine Laboratory, and Star Island.
This event, generously sponsored by Physical Sciences, Inc., is free and open to the public, and includes a coffee and dessert reception and feature educational materials from the event hosts. Because space is limited, reservations are requested. Please reserve you seat by signing up at www.seacoastsciencecenter.org/events.
