[Coral-List] Pacific Network of Marine Educators

[Jim Hendee]

[From J. Michael Nolan]

International Pacific Marine Educators Conference Establishes Network to 
Protect the Ocean, Presentations Available Online
 
(HONOLULU -- 31 January 2007) The International Pacific Marine Educators 
Conference (IPMEC), which brought together marine educators from 18 
countries Jan. 15 to 18, 2007, in Honolulu, has resulted in the 
establishment of a Pacific network of marine educators designed to 
ensure the health of the Pacific and the communities that depend upon 
it. The network aims to facilitate real action in marine education and 
highlight the need for ocean stewardship across the Pacific.
 
The conference was hosted and sponsored by the Western Pacific Regional 
Fishery Management Council (WPRFMC). It was originally to be held at and 
co-hosted by the University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji but was 
relocated to Honolulu after the Dec. 5, 2006, coup in that country. 
Additional support for the conference came from NOAA Ocean Exploration 
Program, National Marine Sanctuary Foundation, National Marine Educators 
Association, The Ocean Foundation and the World Ocean Network's 
Sustainable Actions Committee.
 
"The Pacific contains the largest and most diverse coral reef 
ecosystems, produces two-thirds of the world's tuna, extends over almost 
half of the globe, and has major impacts on the world's climate," notes 
Kitty M. Simonds, WPRFMC executive director, on the importance of this 
landmark occasion.
 
Nearly 100 marine educators participated in the conference both onsite 
and online during two days of presentations and one day of workshops. 
The conference featured nearly 60 on-site and real-time web-delivered 
presentations from areas spanning the East Coast of the United States to 
Papua New Guinea. All of these presentations as well as the opening and 
closing ceremonies are now available as web-based streaming video at the 
College of Exploration website <www.coexploration.org/ipmec/>.
 
Ben Mikaere Namakin, an environmental educator originally from Kiribati 
and currently at the Conservation Society for Pohnpei, was selected to 
chair the Ad Hoc Organizing Committee for the next IPMEC and to further 
establish the network. He replaces Sylvia Spalding, WPRFMC media and 
education specialist, who chaired the first committee. Offers to host 
the next conference came from Australia, Easter Island and Fiji.
 
For more information, visit www.ipmec.info or contact Sylvia Spalding at 
Sylvia.spalding at noaa.gov or Ben Namakin at bnamakin at yahoo.com.
 
IPMEC Organizing Committee 2007-2008

- Ben Mikaere Namakin, Conservation Society for Pohnpei, Federated 
States of Micronesia  (Chair)
- Leimana DaMate, Pacific Islands Resource Management Institute, Hawaii
- Jarad Makaiau, Western Pacific Regional Fishery Management Council, Hawaii
- Jasmine Mason, Thompson Rivers University, British Columbia, Canada
- Jennifer Metz, Joint Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Research, Hawaii
- Luis Pintos, Centro AquaSendas, Chil
- Craig Strang, Lawrence Hall of Science, University of California, 
Berkeley, USA
- Teny Topalian, National Marine Fisheries Service, Northern Mariana Islands
- Nacaniele "Nat" Tuivavalaqi, College of the Marshall Islands, Marshall 
Islands
- Andrew Vance, Melbourne Girls College, Australia

-- 
Sylvia Spalding
Media and Education Specialist
Western Pacific Fishery Management Council
1164 Bishop St., Suite 1400
Honolulu, HI 96813
Phone +1 808 522-5341; Fax +1 808 522-8226
email, sylvia.spalding at noaa.gov
url www.wpcouncil.org