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<p class="MsoNormal">Dear members of RI's commercial fisheries,<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">This is your official invitation to get involved in a new project called Resilient Fisheries RI! <o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Resilient Fisheries RI is the outgrowth of a series of interviews that I conducted over the last year with many of you, relating to how environmental change is affecting fisheries and what we need to do to position our industry to stay
resilient in the face of these changes. <o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">Based on what I learned from these conversations, I've set up a series of
<a href="http://resilientfisheriesri.org/join-a-workshop/">winter workshops</a> for the benefit of learning more about some of the most important issues. We'll kick off in December with four workshops focused on the big environmental changes happening around
us: warming waters, ocean acidification, and multi-faceted ecological changes in Narragansett Bay. In January and February, the series will continue with sessions on young people in the industry, diversity and flexibility, the sea bass explosion, nuisance
seaweed, squid in a changing climate, and more. By springtime, I expect we'll have a profusion of great ideas! With input from across RI ports and fisheries, I'll tie these ideas together in a "Resilience Blueprint" -- a strategic document that will give industry
members a credible tool to advocate for our future in a changing world.<o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">More background on the project is available at <a href="http://www.resilientfisheriesri.org">
www.resilientfisheriesRI.org</a>. Attached you will find a guide on how to plug into the project, as well as a schedule of December workshops. <o:p></o:p></p>
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<p class="MsoNormal">***You don't want to miss the first workshop! It's December 7 at 4:00 pm at the Wakefield favorite Whalers Brewery! We will be joined by Jon Hare, the new director the Northeast Fisheries Science Center. He'll share with us the results
of a two-year project that assessed the relative vulnerability of a bunch of East Coast fisheries to climate change. Here's your chance to get to know Jon and learn about his pioneering work and his vision for the Science Center. Appetizers will be provided
and draft brews are on tap. Come sip on a winter warmer while learning about warmer winters!<o:p></o:p></p>
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