Connecting Climate Science to Fisheries Management and Ecology in a Changing World

Evidence is accumulating that diverse climate changes are impacting marine ecosystems and the living marine resources (LMRs), human communities and economies that depend on them.  Increasing ocean temperatures, changes in ocean currents, losses of sea ice, rising sea levels, and ocean acidification have already been implicated in shifts in species distribution, abundance, and phenology of living marine resources.  Furthermore, climate projections suggest that these impacts may increase in the future with continued changes in the global climate system.   In the face of these changing conditions, fishery and climate experts are developing tools and approaches to better assess, predict and incorporate climate impacts into management of the nation’s valuable marine and coastal fisheries."

This symposium will provide an in-depth look at state-of-the-art efforts to assess and respond to the impacts of climate change on marine and coastal fish and fisheries. Using a combination of case-study and synthesis presentations, the session will highlight the opportunities and challenges to (1) provide information on current and future climate-driven changes on marine systems and fish stocks, and (2) incorporate this information into fisheries management.  The objective is to provide participants with a survey of current tools, approaches, lessons learned and critical next steps for incorporating climate change projections in decision-making for living marine resources.  This symposium will provide AFS members with an up-to-date assessment from both climate and fishery experts on what climate information and projections are currently available for use, how they are being used to assess current and future impacts on fish and fisheries, and the challenges and opportunities of incorporating this information into fisheries management.  Participants will have opportunity to interact with the experts through question-and-answer time after each presentation, and during a moderated discussions with all presenters at the end of the morning and afternoon sessions.