Headwaters to Oceans (H2O) Conference

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Headwaters to Oceans (H2O) is a 2-day conference to promote integration across disciplines, sectors, organizations, and institutions around common interests related to water, oceans, coastal environments, resilience, and terrestrial interfaces with marine systems. Through dynamic panels, presentations, and working groups attendees will identify new challenges and advance solutions-oriented thinking about these topical areas. The conference will highlight impactful projects and scholarship, and translate science for policy and action. In addition to creating opportunities to share best practices, H2O will engage and provide networking opportunities to a diverse cross-section of leaders and knowledge-brokers, including those traditionally underrepresented in these conversations.

Conference History

The first Headwaters to Ocean (H2O) Conference was convened in 2003 and has been held ten times at different locations in southern California. Past conferences covered a wide spectrum of coast and ocean issues, including but not limited to, climate change, sea level rise, coastal and estuarine processes, wetlands restoration planning and design, beach nourishment, water quality, ecosystem management, habitat management, invasive and exotic species management, wetlands biology and ecology, regional sediment management, shore protection, and habitat conservation and management. Past conferences have drawn a diverse mixture of presenters and attendees including elected officials, researchers, coastal engineers, wetland biologists/ecologists, coastal resource managers, coastal scientists, aquatic ecologists, landscape architects, urban planners, coastal geologists, dredging specialists, and water quality specialists from local, regional, state, and federal government, the private sector, and non profit organizations.

Program Committee

  • California Shore and Beach Preservation Association
  • Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project
  • Southern California Coastal Water Research Project
  • State Coastal Conservancy
  • Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve
  • UCI Oceans
  • UCI Sustainability Initiative
  • Water UCI

Organizing Committee

  • California Shore and Beach Preservation Association
  • Southern California Wetlands Recovery Project
  • Tijuana River National Estuarine Research Reserve
  • UCI Oceans
  • UCI Sustainability Initiative
  • Water UCI

Event Details

Date: May 23-24, 2017
Location: Beckman Center of the National Academies of Science and Engineering, 100 Academy Dr., Irvine, CA 92617
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