Big Changes in the Great Lakes:
A Virtual Institute for Journalists
May + June, 2021
(Itinerary displayed in reverse chronological order: June 10, June 3, May 20, May 13)
Thursday, June 10: Restoration
Noon - 1:15 p.m. - Overview of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative
Cameron Davis
Vice President, GEI Consultants
1:00 - 1:30 p.m. - Break
1:30 - 3:00 p.m. - Success in Muskegon: How an Area of Concern got Delisted
Marc Tuchman
Great Lakes Remediation and Restoration Branch Chief, Great Lakes National Program Office, U.S. EPA
Kathy Evans
Environment Program Manager, West Michigan Shoreline Regional Development Commission
Alan Steinman
Professor/Director, Annis Water Resources Institute, Grand Valley State University
3:00 - 3:30 p.m. - Break
3:30 - 4:30 - Success story? Who benefits from a cleaned-up Muskegon Lake
Kelly Parker
Professor, Philosophy, Environmental and Sustainability Studies, Gran Valley State University
Mary Cooper
Member, Muskegon Lake Watershed Partnership
4:30 - 5:00 p.m. - A Conversation with the Great Lakes National Program Office
Chris Korleski
Director, Great Lakes National Program Office, U.S. EPA
Todd Nettesheim
Deputy Director, Great Lakes National Program Office, U.S. EPA
5:00 p.m. - Institute adjourns
Thursday, June 3: Fisheries
Noon - 1:15 p.m. - Bottom up, top down: How human activity has altered an ecosystem
Annie Scofield
Life Scientist, EPA Great Lakes National Program Office
Dan O’Keefe
Senior Extension Coordinator, Southwest District, Michigan Sea Grant
1:15 - 1:30 p.m. - Break
1:30 - 3:00 p.m. - Moving target: Managing a dynamic (and challenged) resource
Randy Claramunt
Lake Huron Basin Coordinator, Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Kelly Robinson
Assistant Professor, Michigan State University Department of Fisheries and Wildlife
Lauren Jescovitch
Extension Educator, Western Upper Peninsula, Michigan Sea Grant
3:00 - 3:30 p.m. - Break
3:30 - 5:00 p.m. - Here's the catch: How user groups adapt to a shifting fishery
Bill Mattes
Great Lakes Section Leader, Great Lakes Indian Fish & Wildlife Commission
Matt Hehn
Charter Fisherman
Ali Shakoor
Aquatic Ecologist/PhD Candidate, Wayne State University
5:00 p.m. - Institute adjourns for the day.
Thursday, May 20: Clean Water
Noon - 1:00 p.m. - Clean Waters: 50 Years Later, How Close Are We to "Fishable, Swimmable, Drinkable?"
Oday Salim
Staff Attorney, Great Lakes Regional Center/Director, Environmental Law & Sustainability Clinic, National Wildlife Federation/University of Michigan Law School
1:00 - 1:30 p.m. - Break
1:30 - 3:00 p.m. - Murky Waters: Agricultural Runoff, Algae Blooms and Human Health Concerns
Jeff Reuter
Former Director, Ohio Sea Grant and Stone Lab
Alicia Smith
Director of Community Programming & Associate Director of Policy, Freshwater Future
Jiyoung Lee
Professor, College of Public Health Division of Environmental Health Sciences, The Ohio State University
3:00 - 3:30 p.m. - Break
3:30 - 5:00 p.m. - Troubled Waters: Emerging Contaminants and What They Mean for the Great Lakes
Edith Leoso
Tribal Historic Preservation Officer, Bad River Band of Lake Superior Chippewa
Marta Venier
Assistant Professor, O'Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs, Indiana University
Sherri “Sam” Mason
Sustainability Coordinator, Penn State Behrend
5:00 p.m. - Institute adjourns for the day.
Thursday, may 13: Climate
11:30 a.m. - noon - Journalists meet-and-greet
Noon - 1 p.m. (Central!) - Great Lakes 101: What Warming Waters Mean for the Great Lakes
Sapna Sharma
Associate professor, Department of Biology, York University
1:00 - 1:30 p.m. - Break
1:30 - 3:00 p.m. - Bloom Boom? Algae Outbreaks Mar Lake Superior's Crystal Clear Reputation
Bob Sterner
Large Lakes Observatory, University of Minnesota-Duluth
Brenda LaFrancois
Regional Aquatic Ecologist, National Park Service
3:00 - 3:30 p.m. - Break
3:30 - 5:00 p.m. - Waterlogged: New Precipitation Trends Challenge Aging Infrastructure
Omar Gates
Climatologist/Climate Integration Associate, Great Lakes Integrated Sciences and Assessments, NOAA
Scott Bernstein
Founder/Former Director, Center for Neighborhood Technology
Mark Ogden
Technical Specialist, Association of State Dam Safety Officials
5:00 p.m. - Institute adjourns for the day.