Past Events
Photogrammetry and Poop: Tracking Killer Whale Health
The Salish Sea Institute invited Dr. Holly Fearnbach of SR3 (Sealife Response + Rehab + Research), and Dr. Giles of Seadoc gave a webinar on their individual projects on October 15th 2025.
Dr. Fearnbach spoke on her long-term drone aerial photographic 3D modeling research on the endangered population of Southern Resident killer whales. She shared research updates and how the data is being used to help recover the population.
Dr. Giles gave an overview of SeaDoc’s Southern Resident Killer Whale Health Monitoring Program as well as a summary of collaborative research projects being conducted that paint a near real-time picture of the health of endangered Southern Resident killer whales and provide timely data to the public and management agencies used to understand and address the causes of population decline.
Shared Waters of the Salish Sea
Screening and Conversation with the Film Maker.
September 25th, 2025
The Salish Sea Institute, along with Whatcom Community College, screened three short documentary films from Original Pursuit and Plumb productions about two iconic, threatened species of the Pacific Northwest: The southern Resident Orcas, and the Chinook Salmon they need for survival.
After the screening a Q&A with Filmmaker Jessica Plumb was held.
Trust, Tension, and Action at the Border
Regional Cross-Border Collaboration in an Age of Uncertainty
The Salish Sea Institute, the Border Policy Research Institute, and the Center for Canadian-American Studies held a fascinating webinar. Listen as a panel of transboundary expert discuss how increased tensions are impacting collaborative work between BC and WA and the efforts to overcome them.
Watch the Webinar vimeo.com/manage/videos/1092918252
Connecting Orcas, People and the Future We Share
The Salish Sea Institute hosted a webinar for Orca Month. Listen to experts from BC and WA as they talk about the current research being conducted and collaborations that are happening in the Salish Sea to better understand and recover southern resident orcas.
Watch the Webinar https://vimeo.com/1092606762?share=copy#t=0
Successes, Challenges, and Maintaining Hope for Salish Sea Restoration and Protection
A Report from the Front Lines
The Salish Sea Institute brought together an amazing group of experts to speak about the programs they are involved in. Covering killer whale protection, shoreline restoration, clean boating, community outreach, and transboundary communication in the Salish Sea.
These experts shared their stories, with recognition and discussion of today's socio-political challenges.
Featuring Patti Gobin, Lovel Pratt, Julie Watson, Beatrice Frank, Chloe Robinson, and our very own Ginny Broadhurst.
Watch the Webinar https://vimeo.com/1080663764?share=copy#t=0
A Network of Hope for the Salish Sea
The Salish Sea Institute gathered a panel of experts from BC and WA who are working on a variety of projects and programs to restore and protect the Salish Sea. Each of the speakers has also participated in one of our Hope for the Salish Sea workshops with author Elin Kelsey. Enjoy the discussion about how we're all maintaining hope and inspiration in this challenging time.
Watch the Webinar https://vimeo.com/1089118593
Dr. Drew Harvell Seminar & Book Signing
The Salish Sea Institute had the great pleasure of hosting Dr. Drew Harvell for a Seminar and book signing of their new book The Ocean's Menagerie. The Ocean's Menagerie is a tale of biological marvels, a story of a woman's adventurous career in science, and a call to arms to protect the world's most ancient ecosystems.
Watch the Seminar https://vimeo.com/1088503703?share=copy#t=0
Climate Change in the Salish Sea Bioregion: Webinar
On December 11th the Salish Sea Institute hosted a webinar on Climate Change in the Salish Sea Bioregion: Observed and Projected Trends in Temperature and Precipitation featuring Dr. Aquila Flower.
Watch the webinar vimeo.com/showcase/10565644/video/1038996786
Reconstructing Ancestral səl̓ilwətaɬ Diets
SSI held a webinar in October entitled: "Reconstructing Ancestral səl̓ilwətaɬ Diets-Archaeology and Ecology for Indigenous Food Sovereignty" by Dr. Meghan Efford. This talk discussed a unique research project under the leader of səl̓ilwətaɬ (Tsleil-Waututh Nation). This research integrates archeology, ecology, historical, and archival records, and səl̓ilwətaɬ traditional, ecological, and cultural knowledge to reconstruct a best estimate of the precontact diet of səl̓ilwətaɬ communities.
Watch the Webinar https://vimeo.com/1024560289?share=copy#t=0
The Extraordinary Salish Sea
"The Extraordinary Salish Sea" by our own Salish Sea Fellows, Bob Turner! The film explores the Salish Sea highlighting its unique geography, diverse climates, and rich biodiversity. The film emphasizes the ecological importance of the Salish Sea and the need for conservation amidst growing human impact from urbanization and industry.
'Orcatober' webinar
On October 23 the Salish Sea Institute hosted a webinar on helping killer whales of the Salish Sea featuring Dr. Deborah Giles, Monika Weiland Shields and Misty Macduffee.
Watch the Webinar https://vimeo.com/877695730
Webinar: An Update on Orca Recovery in the Salish Sea
Recorded Thursday, October 13, 2022
Watch the Webinar https://vimeo.com/760093383
Hear from managers in Washington state and British Columbia who are working on orca recovery actions. This one hour webinar will focus on actions being taken on both sides of the border to support the Southern Resident Killer Whales and provide an overview of their current health. The webinar will be moderated by Ginny Broadhurst, Director of the Salish Sea Institute.
State of the Salish Sea Series: Please, Tell Me Something Good about Climate and the Salish Sea
Recorded September 23, 2021
Brought to you by the Salish Sea Institute in partnership with the WWU Alumni Association
Join us to hear about two significant and ambitious construction projects that are going above and beyond “normal” practices. The Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, set to open October 2021, claims to be “the most progressive, responsible and sustainable arena in the world.” Sen̓áḵw is a vision for a development in downtown Vancouver BC. It will be Canada’s first large-scale net zero carbon housing development — and one of only a few in the world.
State of the Salish Sea Series: Celebration of the Salish Sea from Artists & Authors
Recorded June 10, 2021
Brought to you by the Salish Sea Institute in partnership with the WWU Alumni Association
Have you ever fallen in love with a place? How do you care for our homewaters? How do you sustain hope in trying times? Join us to open your hearts to the Salish Sea through poetry and story. Together we’ll celebrate this special place and commit to collective action for the future.
State of the Salish Sea Series: Symposium #1
Recorded May 26, 2021
Brought to you by the Salish Sea Institute in partnership with the WWU Alumni Association
The first event in our State of the Salish Sea series will provide an overview of the report from lead writer Kathryn Sobocinski, as well as feature contributors Tara Martin and Aquila Flower who will share about the Fraser River delta and new Salish Sea digital atlas maps. Ginny Broadhurst, Director of the Salish Sea Institute, will host the conversation and there will be time for audience questions and discussion.
Preview of the State of the Salish Sea Report
Recorded February 25, 2021
The Salish Sea Institute will be releasing a State of the Salish Sea report by early May.
The report takes a detailed look at legacy, continuing, and emerging threats and describes opportunities to build understanding, resilience, and improvement within the ecosystem.
It will provide an overall assessment of the health of the international Salish Sea ecosystem by looking at the two most pervasive threats: a growing human footprint and climate change. These impacts are not isolated—the intersection of the two yields cumulative effects across a variety of ecosystem components that are not easily measured and that are variable in space and time.
Dr. Kathryn Sobocinski (WWU Marine and Coastal Sciences) is the lead author for the report. Guest contributors from around the Salish Sea provide additional scientific expertise and perspectives.
Salish Sea Science Symposium: Implications of Noise from Navy Aircraft for the Salish Sea and Olympic Region
Recorded March 16, 2021
The San Juan County Marine Resources Committee (MRC) and the Salish Sea Institute at Western Washington University invite you to learn about navy jet noise and impacts to humans and wildlife in the region. Lauren Kuehne and Rob Williams will present from recently published scientific research and a moderated panel discussion will follow. There will be opportunities for questions from the audience.