Morning Keynote Presentation
8:45-9:45am

Take a deep dive into the world of the southern resident killer whales, one of the most complex, intelligent societies on our planet. The southern residents co-evolved with the salmon of our region and saving the southern resident killer whales from extinction requires rebuilding the salmon populations these orcas depend on. We know from successes throughout our region that change is possible and if given the chance to rebound, nature quickly responds. We know what to do, how to do it, and even where these actions are needed. What is needed now is the political will and funding to make more of these large-scale restoration actions happen, all over our region. If we do our part, orcas and salmon will take care of the rest.
Speaker

Lynda V. Mapes | Lead Environmental Reporter, The Seattle Times
Lynda V. Mapes is the lead environmental reporter at The Seattle Times, covering native culture, natural history and environmental topics. In addition, Lynda is an associate of the Harvard Forest of Harvard University, in Petersham, MA.

She has written five books. They include Elwha, a River Reborn, about the largest dam removal project in history, incorporating the effort to revive a wilderness watershed in Washington's Olympic National Park and its once legendary salmon runs. In 2014-15, as a Bullard Fellow at the Harvard Forest, she explored the human and natural history of a single, 100-year old oak to write Witness Tree, published by the University of Washington Press in 2019.
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Her most recent book is Orca: Shared Waters, Shared Home, a co-publication with The Seattle Times and Braided River, released in 2021. It is an account of the southern resident orca whales' struggle to survive and is based on her award-winning series in The Seattle Times, "Hostile Waters: Orcas in Peril."

Over the course of her career she has won numerous awards, including the international 2019 and 2012 Kavli gold award for science journalism from the American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world's largest professional science association. She was recognized by NOAA Fisheries in 2016 with the prestigious Dr. Nancy Foster Habitat Conservation Award for her reporting on fish and habitat. In 2013-14, Lynda was awarded a 9-month Knight fellowship in Science Journalism at MIT. She lives in Seattle.

 https://www.seattletimes.com/author/lynda-v-mapes/


Afternoon Keynote Presentation
1:00-2:00pm

Framed through the perspective of his book Homewaters: A Human and Natural History of Puget Sound, Williams will take a deep look at the history of the Sound and the interactions between people and place. How have the changing relationships between resource extraction, scientific understanding, and government action led to a healthier Sound and how do these stories provide hope for further improvements to this beautiful, diverse, and resilient landscape?

Learn more: https://geologywriter.com
Speaker

David B. Williams | Author, Naturalist and Tour Guide
David B. Williams is an author, naturalist, and tour guide whose new book, Homewaters: A Human and Natural History of Puget Sound is an exploration of the stories of this beautiful waterway. He is the author of the award-winning book Too High and Too Steep: Reshaping Seattle's Topography, as well as Seattle Walks: Discovering History and Nature in the City and Stories in Stone: Travels Through Urban Geology. Williams is also a Curatorial Associate at the Burke Museum. Follow him on Twitter @geologywriter.

Email: wingate@seanet.com