Northeast Ocean Data Working Group member Emily Shumchenia participated yesterday in a special screening of the film “Ocean Frontiers III” at the New England Aquarium in Boston. The screening was part of Working Port: A 21st-Century Harbor, a two-day idea exchange event organized by Boston Harbor Now in conjunction with the release of the “Boston’s Working Port: A Foundation for Innovation” report. 

The award-winning Ocean Frontiers film series explores the challenges at the heart of ocean conservation and development, presenting solutions from a range of people who are leading the way to a healthy and sustainable ocean future. The Northeast Ocean Data Portal is featured in the films as an important resource to support regional ocean planning. 

Portal Demonstration

Demonstration of Northeast Ocean Data on the IMAX screen.

After the film, Emily presented a five-minute demonstration of the Portal on the IMAX screen that introduced the audience to the data and mapping capabilities available to the public at northeastoceandata.org. In keeping with the event’s theme, she highlighted data and maps relevant to Boston Harbor and its working port. 

A panel conversation followed the demonstration. Along with Emily, the panel included Bruce Carlisle (Director, Massachusetts Coastal Zone Management), Mark Cutter (Assistant Branch Chief, Waterways Management, U.S. Coast Guard Sector Boston), and Randall Lyons (Executive Director, Massachusetts Marine Trades Associatio) with moderator Bud Ris (Senior Advisor, Green Ribbon Commission, former CEO New England Aquarium).

“The Northeast Ocean Data Portal sparked the interest of the wide variety of attendees who came out to the Aquarium to hear about ocean planning in Boston Harbor, the state of Massachusetts, and the Northeast region,” said Emily. “The whole panel fielded great questions from the audience about how access to ocean data is central to understanding coastal communities’ roles in our economy, the challenges associated with assessing cumulative impacts, planning for multiple ocean uses, and the nature of species shifts due to climate change.”

Video: Watch Emily’s demonstration of the Northeast Ocean Data Portal.

The screening was organized in partnership with Boston Harbor Now, Green Fire Productions, and the New England Aquarium.