West Coast Regional Ocean Governance: Commissions, Alliances & Portals, Oh My! A History of Melding Ocean Policy, Science & Data

Regional ocean governance was a key element of both the Pew Ocean Commission and US Commission on Ocean Policy (USCOP) reports nearly 20 years ago, highlighting the need for more effective ecosystem-based approaches to management. Within the recommendations of these esteemed groups was the charge for more effective coordination of governments and policy to manage our oceans, along with the science and data to inform it. Since the release of those reports, a number of agreements, legislative priorities and executive actions have resulted in the evolution of ocean management and science in the United States. In this talk, a brief history will be provided of the Pew and USCOP ocean reports and the emphasis on ecosystem-based ocean science and policy, and the immediate impacts to ocean management. From there, highlights of the evolution of regional ocean activities on the US West Coast will be provided, culminating in the current state of the West Coast Ocean Alliance and West Coast Ocean Data Portal. Throughout, enhancements to the use of science to inform policy, and the resulting changes to management, will be illuminated to inform where the near and long-term future of ecosystem science and regional governance may evolve next.