2021 Delaware Estuary Science & Environmental Summit

Topic areas will be broken-up into individual breakout rooms. Presenting authors will be available in each breakout room for discussion and Q&A. Attendees will be able to choose between and visit various breakout rooms throughout the session. Please make sure you have the latest version of Zoom downloaded for the best breakout room experience. www.zoom.us/download

Click here for the list of presentations by breakout room. Poster and Presentations are now available for viewing!

Meeting ID: 873 7965 0946
Passcode: 318755

Seen a good TED Talk lately? Want to discuss it with others? Join us for this social and informative event. Its like a book club, but for TED Talks!

We will provide a list of interesting and thought provoking TED Talks (see below), you are welcome (and encouraged) to watch them in advance. The more popular ones we'll take time to watch during the event. Depending on attendance and interest we will discuss as a group or use breakout rooms to start conversations around some of these fascinating topics!

Have you seen a TED Talk that relates to the themes of the Summit that you'd like to see featured? Submit a link here and we'll add it to our list!

List of TED Talks
David Lammy, Climate Justice Can't Happen With Racial Justice
Katharine Wilkinson, How Empowering Women and Girls Can Help Stop Global Warming
Van Jones, The Economic Injustice of Plastic
Siddhartha Roy, Science in Service to the Public Good
Britt Wray, How Climate Change Affects Your Mental Health
Sonaar Luthra, We Need to Track the World's Water Like We Track Weather
Finnegan Harries, A Creative Approach to Climate Change
Emily De Sousa, A Drop in a Plastic Ocean
David Wallace-Wells, How We Could Change the Planet's Climate Future


Meeting ID: 850 7626 0812
Passcode: 031214

Keynote Address: Benjamin D. Hamlington, Ph.D. Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology

Dr. Ben Hamlington is a Research Scientist in the Sea Level and Ice Group at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory. He studies global and regional sea-level changes with a particular focus on using satellite observations to understand sea level variability on interannual to decadal timescales. He has done considerable work on understanding sea level during the 20th century, comparing historical in situ data to modern satellite observations. He is also interested in how sea level responds to both natural and anthropogenic forcing, and what this will mean for coastal populations both now and in the future. This interest extends to bridging the gap between scientist and decision-makers, and the challenge of generating useful scientific information for planning purposes. Dr. Hamlington is a member of NASA's Ocean Surface Topography and GRACE/GRACE-FO science teams and is the current team lead of the NASA Sea Level Change Science team. He is also a member of the Interagency Sea Level Taskforce, USGCRP Coasts Group, and WCRP Grand Challenge on Sea Level.​​​​

How NASA Is Using Satellites to Understand Sea Level Science

The continuous and near‐global coverage of satellites has led to significant advances in our understanding of sea-level rise on both global and regional scales. In this presentation, an overview of the sea level observing network is provided and connected to improvements in our understanding of the physical processes that drive sea level change. Future observing efforts are discussed and areas where there is still uncertainty in assessments of future sea level are highlighted. Finally, challenges of translating science into actionable information are outlined and potential solutions to these challenges are presented.

✎ indicates student presentation;  ϟ  indicates lightning talk

• 10:30am Kreeger, Danielle; Senior Science Director, Partnership for the Delaware Estuary; Member, Advisory Committee on Climate Change; Climate Change Indicators in the Technical Report for the Delaware Estuary and River Basin
• 10:45am Chen, Fanghui, Ph.D., P.E., Senior Water Resource Engineer, DRBC; Sea Level Rise Impacts on Delaware Estuary Wetlands and Marshes
• 11:00am Weis, Judith; Professor Emerita, Department of Biological Sciences, Rutgers University; How are Delaware Bay's Salt Marshes Faring in the Face of Sea Level Rise?
• 11:15am ✎ Shimon, Mayci, Graduate Assistant, Villanova University; Erin Johnson, Villanova University; Nathaniel Weston, Villanova University; Impacts of Salinity Change on Greenhouse Gas Emissions in Marsh Ecosystems along the Salinity Gradient in the Delaware River Estuary  ✎
• 11:30am Wang, Ruo-Qian, Rutgers University; Satellite-based Monitoring of Delaware Bay Surface Area
• 11:45am Q & A

Associated Posters & Pre-recorded Presentations
See Poster/Pre-recorded presentation discussion session

• Miller, Cassandra, Wesley College; William Kroen, Wesley College; Determining if an Elongation of the Growing Season has an Effect on Algal Blooms
• Keller, Neil, Wesley College; William Kroen, Wesley College  Observed Sea Level Rise in the St. Jones River

 Glenn “Hurricane” Schwartz will kick off the afternoon with a discussion of climate change impacts on rain, snow, and flooding in the basin.  Melting ice in the Arctic has not only affected weather patterns but also the ability of meteorologists to forecast the weather.  Glacial ice melt is also connected to the changes in precipitation patterns we are seeing locally, trends that will continue as the climate warms.  Glenn Schwartz has been forecasting the weather for nearly 50 years since graduating from Penn State with a B.S. in Meteorology.  He is a meteorologist at NBC10 and has covered the Greater Philadelphia area for over 24 years.

The featured speaker will be followed by a challenge panel featuring members of DRBC's Advisory Committee on Climate Change.

No matter what your organization, climate change is already having an impact the way we all do business in the Delaware River Basin. Members of the DRBC’s Advisory Committee on Climate Change will moderate and participate in this expert panel to address the question of how climate change has affected their work and organizational priorities and strategies. Each panel member will pose a critical climate challenge, followed by a series of questions posed by the moderator and audience.

2:15pm McCabe, Gregory, Research Physical Scientist, Water Mission Area, United States Geological Survey; Hydro-climatic Drought in the Delaware River Basin.

2:30pm Woltemade, Christopher, Professor & Chair, Department of Geography-Earth Science, Center for Land Use and Sustainability, Shippensburg University; Impact of Changing Climate and Land Cover on Flood Magnitudes in the Delaware River Basin
mate and Land Cover on Flood Magnitudes in the Delaware River Basin
2:45pm Kraucunas, Ian, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL); David Moulton, Los Alamos National Laboratory; David Judi, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Elizabeth Hunke, Los Alamos National Laboratory; L. Ruby Leung, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Integrated Coastal Modeling - a New DOE Project

3:00pm Closing Remarks: Kristen Bowman Kavanagh, P.E., Deputy Executive Director, Delaware River Basin Commission & Danielle Kreeger, Ph.D., Senior Science Director, Partnership for the Delaware Estuary

Topic areas will be broken-up into individual breakout rooms. Presenting authors will be available in each breakout room for discussion and Q&A. Attendees will be able to choose between and visit various breakout rooms throughout the session. Please make sure you have the latest version of Zoom downloaded for the best breakout room experience. www.zoom.us/download

Click here for the list of presentations by breakout room. Poster and Presentations are now available for viewing!

Meeting ID: 852 9413 2744
Passcode: 039557