EAST Marine Ecosystems (EASTME) conference
Reporting Annual Change at a Regional Scale & Building Social Capital
Photo credit: Chris Gomersall
13 May 2025, Lincoln
10:00 – 16:00
Speakers confirmed in programme below
The upcoming EAST Marine Ecosystems (EASTME) conference is delighted to announce some of the speakers featuring in the event next month. The event will feature 10 short talks reflecting on local observations, research outputs and findings from 2024. The talks will cover a comprehensive range of natural systems including oceanography and plankton, the seabed and seashore, coastal and estuarine habitats, marine and coastal birds and marine mammals. A number of themes relating to the management of the environment will include marine planning, marine protected areas, plastic pollution and energy.
With its ambition to mobilise marine social capital, this one-day conference is an opportunity to develop networks, open communication and build relationships among people in the marine and coastal community. The EASTME region includes Flamborough Head to the southern Suffolk border, including the Humber and Wash.
The event is being hosted at the University of Lincoln and is open to citizen scientists, academics, managers, policy makers, industry, dedicated volunteers and the public. With a £35 registration fee, the event aims to be accessible to all those interested.
If you would like to hear more about EASTME directly or to be involved in one or more of the Communities of Practice, please sign up to its dedicated mailing list here.
Programme
Welcome to the conference: Mark Schuerch, Associate Professor Physical Geography, University of Lincoln
Introduction & interactive session: Silvana Birchenough, Principal Marine Scientist, ERM
Session 1
Chair: Kelly-Ann Willson, The Wash & North Norfolk Partnership
- Oceanography, Plankton & Productivity: Rodney Forster, Hull University
- Seabed and Seashore: Ian Wilson, Benthic solutions
- Coastal & Estuarine Habitats: Milo Sumner, RSPB
- Q&A
Break and refreshments
Session 2
Chair: Tammy Smalley, Lincolnshire Wildlife Trust
- Marine and Coastal Birds: Dave O’Hara, RSPB
- Marine Mammals – Seals: Speaker TBC
- Marine Mammals – Cetaceans: Speaker TBC
- Marine Planning: Mark Maguire, MMO
- Q&A
Break and refreshments
Session 3
Chair: Mark Schuerch, University of Lincoln
- Marine Protected Areas: Speaker TBC
- Plastic Pollution and Marine Debris: Speaker TBC
- Energy in the Marine Environment: Speaker TBC
- Q&A
Closing: Speaker TBC
The EASTME project forms part of the Natural Capital approaches at the land-sea interface (LSI) project, which is being led by the Environment Agency under Defra’s Marine Natural Capital and Ecosystem Assessment (mNCEA) programme. The proposed work will deliver the LSI project’s work package on ‘Mobilising marine social capital’.
We hope you can join us to celebrate being part of the newly established EASTME. Please share with colleagues and within your networks if you think there is someone who may want to join.
If you would like to hear more about EASTME directly or to be involved in one or more of the Communities of Practice, please sign up to its dedicated mailing list here.