The Arthur R. Marshall Foundation for the Everglades and the Florida Environmental Institute, which champions the restoration and preservation of the greater ecosystem of Florida’s historic River of Grass, will co-host a sea level rise symposium from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday, July 26 at the Oxbridge Academy of the Palm Beaches.
“It is particularly important to outline sea level rise challenges to current science and engineering graduates because they are the ones who will inherit consequences of what previous generations left in their wake,” said John A. Marshall, chairman of the institute. “Certainly, more consideration of the consequences of sea level rise is needed in long-range planning by local, county, state and federal governments, including educating the public about the probability of a markedly different coastal landscape in the years ahead.”
The Marshall Foundation and its summer interns are co-hosting the symposium along with the Oxbridge Academy and the League of Women Voters.
Among the 45 expert speakers who will participate in a series of presentations, breakout sessions and workshops will be: John Englander, oceanographer and author of High Tide on Main Street; Stan Bronson, executive director of the Florida Earth Foundation; Camille Coley, assistant vice president for research at Florida Atlantic University; Pat Gleason, former member of the South Florida Water Management District Governing Board and past president of the Grassy Waters Preserve; Anne Henderson, an engineer working with FAU on a NASA-funded curriculum on climate science investigations; Gary Hines, senior vice president of development at the Business Development Board of Palm Beach County; Bonnie Lazar, president of the Realtors Association of the Palm Beaches; Jim Murley, executive director of the South Florida Regional Planning Council; Jayantha Obeysekera, technical lead for climate change and sea level rise investigations for the South Florida Water Management District; State Rep. Mark Pafford (D-District 86); Robert Robbins, director for Palm Beach County’s Department of Environmental Resources Management; Chuck Shaw, chairman of the Palm Beach County School Board; Fred Sklar, Everglades division director for watershed management; and Jon Van Arnam, assistant county administrator.
The symposium is open to the public, community leaders, policymakers, government officials and employees, scientists and teachers. The cost is $30 per person, and reservations can be made online at www.artmarshall.org/registration.
Scholarships to attend the symposium are available for high school teachers and both high school and college students. Exhibitor space and sponsorship opportunities also are available for the event.
For more information, call (561) 233-9004.
