Per UConn guidelines, masking is not required.
We ask that all lecture attendees refrain from attending in-person if you are feeling ill or have been exposed to a virus (Covid, Flu, RSV) within the past 10 days.
Public lectures on coastal issues.
Please join us for our 30th season. This annual lecture series spans the breadth of human interactions with coastal waters, including speakers from the natural and social sciences as well as arts and humanities.
Lecture series is FREE and open to the public.
Lectures begin at 7:30 p.m.
A link to the online lecture is included below. Or join us in-person!
This series is sponsored by Connecticut Sea Grant College Program, Ørsted, UConn Department of Marine Sciences, UConn Maritime Studies Program and the UConn Avery Point Campus Director’s Office.
For more information or to be added to our email list, send an email to CoastalPerspectives@uconn.edu.
Want to Join us at the Live Event, In-Person?
The event is hosted in the Avery Point Auditorium (AUD): Directions | Campus Map.
Parking is free after 5 p.m.; closest lots are near the library (LIB) or in Lot B.
Enter from the Academic Building main entrance, the auditorium is on the second floor at the end of the hall (mobility-disabled accessible); or enter through or near the Student Center and go up two flights of stairs. Campus Map
Want to Join the Online Lecture?
All lectures will be offered in-person; most lectures will be available online, but please check below to confirm.
Click to sign on: https://uconn-cmr.webex.com/uconn-cmr/j.php?MTID=mabb3f11cd46679bbf47eb3e030a57295
- Meeting number (access code): 2632 980 9195
- Event password: coastal
- Join the audio conference only:
- +1-415-655-0002 US Toll
- Use meeting number (access code) shown above.
Guidance on using Webex (our online platform). JPG PDF
Trouble-shooting Tips
- The best online experience is achieved by downloading the app (versus using the online browser option).
- Having trouble logging in? Try using a different web browser – Chrome or Firefox are recommended by Webex.
- Having audio issues? Watch the presentation on your computer and use a phone to call-in for the audio.
- Can’t hear? Confirm that the speakers on your computer are unmuted (speaker icon should not have an “x” over it).
- When you sign on, you will be muted and video will be disabled – you will not be able to turn them on. If you have a question, you may type in the Chat box or you can request to be unmuted in the Chat box – we’d love to hear your voice, so please feel free to make this request! (You may also turn on your video during the Q&A period, upon request.)
2026 Lecture Highlights
Tuesday, February 10, 2026; 7:30 p.m.
Vincent Pieribone, Ph.D., Co-CEO and Chief Science Officer, OceanX; Adjunct Senior Research Scientist, Biology and Paleo Environment, Lamont-Doherty Earth Observatory, Columbia University Climate School; Adjunct Research Scientist, Southern Connecticut State University
The Creation of OceanX – an Oceanographic and Marine Science Research Institution
Dr. Vincent Pieribone will present the genesis and function of the organization OceanX and its research vessel the OceanXplorer. He will discuss the scientific program and opportunities for collaboration and participation in research expeditions. He will also describe some recent findings from the science program.
click here for more information
View the recorded lecture (this lecture might not be recorded)
Tuesday, February 24, 2026; 7:30 p.m.
Liang Wu, Ph.D., Department of Science & Technology Studies, Einaudi Center for International Studies, Southeast Asia Program, and Cornell Oceans, Cornell University
Opening the Black Box of Container Shipping: Technology, Environment, and Society of Global Sea Trade
What is the story behind the modern shipping container? In recent years, the supply chain crisis during the Covid-19 global pandemic, Suez Canal obstruction, Baltimore bridge collapse, geopolitical conflicts, and trade war have all put the shipping industry in the spotlight. In this talk, maritime scholar Dr. Liang Wu from Cornell University will open the black box of container shipping to look into its systematic workings in the postwar globalization era. Traveling through time and between waterfront, shipboard, underwater, and overseas spaces, Dr. Wu will cover everything from shipping externalities to the life stories of seafarers and the maritime future of the planet.
click here for more information
View the recorded lecture (check back after the event, this lecture will be recorded)
Tuesday, March 10, 2026; 7:30 p.m.
Jacob Steinberg, Director & Cinematographer CosmoVision Media Group, Inc.
Ospreys in Crisis: Chesapeake Bay Lessons, Long Island Sound Stakes, and the Menhaden Connection
In the Chesapeake Bay, ospreys are experiencing widespread reproductive failure—an urgent warning from a coastal sentinel species. This lecture explores the emerging links between osprey decline, forage fish availability, and the industrial harvest of Atlantic menhaden, and explains why preventing similar impacts in Long Island Sound requires action now. The talk previews the forthcoming documentary The Most Important Fish in the Sea and introduces a new prey-based study Connecticut Audubon has agreed to launch to monitor risk closer to home.
click here for more information
View the recorded lecture (check back after the event, this lecture will be recorded)
Tuesday, March 24, 2026; 7:30 p.m. (offered in-person only, no online option)
Margaret Rubega, Ph.D., Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, UConn, and Research Associate, American Museum of Natural History
Tern Conservation and Research on Great Gull Island, A Jewel of Long Island Sound
Over 50 years, Helen Hays of the American Museum of Natural History and countless volunteers built one of the most important tern colonies in the world on Great Gull Island, a former US Army Fort in Long Island Sound. The next 50 years will change conditions for the terns dramatically, threatening them through sea level rise and water warming effects. In this presentation, Dr. Rubega , who is collaborating with colleagues at other universities and non-profits, will describe current conservation planning and management on behalf of the terns, and research addressing future challenges.
click here for more information
This lecture will not be recorded.
Tuesday, April 7, 2026; 7:30 p.m.
Sarah Mallory, Annette and Oscar de la Renta Assistant Curator of Drawings and Prints, Morgan Library & Museum
The Art of Dutch Wetlands: Reclamation and Reconciliation
Wetlands, be it marshes, bogs, or sodden shoals, are quintessential features of seventeenth-century Dutch landscape drawings, prints, paintings, and decorative arts. Yet, the cultural significance of these ecosystems, which readily appear in works by celebrated artists including Rembrandt and Vermeer, is often–quite literally–overlooked by art historians. This talk will bring wetlands back into our field of vision. We will examine a wide array of artworks and their makers to reveal the fundamental importance of wetlands to Dutch art. We will also consider how these works, made more than four centuries ago, reflect colonial ideologies that continue to shape the world in which we live.
click here for more information
View the recorded lecture (check back after the event, this lecture will be recorded)
Tuesday, April 21, 2026; 7:30 p.m.
Tomas Koeck, M.A., Film producer, Photographer & Journalist
with: Jon Dodd, Executive Director, Atlantic Shark Institute
and: Jamie Vaudrey, Ph.D., Research Coordinator, Connecticut National Estuarine Research Reserve; Associate Research Professor, Department of Marine Sciences, Universisty of Connecticut
Wild New England: Our Wild Backyard
click here for more information
This lecture will not be recorded.
Past lectures…
2025 Season
Tuesday, February 11, 2025; 7:30 p.m.; Chris Sarro, Marine Scientist, Ørsted and Robert Soden, Permit Manager, Ørsted; Did racial diversity improve the economic performance of New England whaling ships?
Tuesday, February 25, 2025; 7:30 p.m.; Bryce DuBois, Ph.D. Associate Professor of Biology and Environmental Sciences, University of New Haven and Coordinator of the M.A. Program in Marine Policy and Management; The Case for Human / Coastal Shorebird Coexistence: Why the Public Cultures of Shorelines Matter for Equitable Climate Resilience
Tuesday, March 11, 2025; 7:30 p.m.; Wellington Castellucci Jr., Ph.D.; Whalemen Go Down from the North: The History of the North American Whale Hunt in the South Atlantic, Especially in Brazilian Cost. 1760 to 1850
Tuesday, March 25, 2025; 7:30 p.m.; Courtney J. Andersen, owner – Traditional Ship Rigging, https://www.courtneyjohnandersen.com/; Traditional Rigging in the 21st Century
Tuesday, April 8, 2025; 7:30 p.m.; Giovanna McClenachan, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, School of Marine and Atmospheric Sciences, Stony Brook University; Human-natural systems and the climate resilience of coastal communities
Tuesday, April 22, 2025; 7:30 p.m.; Thomas Halaczinsky, filmmaker | producer | photographer | writer; Plum Island – Telling the Story of One of the Most Mysterious Islands on the Eastern Seaboard
2024 Season
Tuesday, February 6, 2024; 7:30 p.m.; Metin Coşgel, Ph.D., Professor of Economics, University of Connecticut; The Development, Construction and Fisheries Monitoring of Orsted’s South Fork Wind Farm; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 12 minutes)
Tuesday, February 20, 2024; 7:30 p.m.; Patrick Lynch, artist | author | designer | photographer; A Tale of Two Estuaries; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 5 minutes)
Tuesday, March 5, 2024; 7:30 p.m.; Maura Coughlin, Ph.D., Department of Art + Design, Northeastern University; Ramshackle Housing and the Erasure of Nineteenth-Century Atlantic Fishing Communities; View the recorded lecture (54 minutes)
Tuesday, March 19, 2024; 7:30 p.m.; Samantha Siedlecki, Ph.D., Associate Professor of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut; Beyond the Surface: Forecasting Ocean Acidification and Other Stressors Facing Marine Resources in a Changing Climate; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 10 minutes)
Tuesday, April 2, 2024; 7:30 p.m.; Michaela J. Thompson, Ph.D., Sustainability & Environmental Management, Harvard Extension School; Shadows in the Water: What Sharks Tell Us About Ourselves; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 14 minutes)
Tuesday, April 16, 2024; 7:30 p.m.; James T. Carlton, Ph.D., Professor of Marine Sciences Emeritus at Williams College and Director Emeritus of the Williams College-Mystic Seaport Maritime Studies Program and Krystal Rose, M.F.A., Curator of Collections, Mystic Seaport Museum; Spineless: The Magical World of Marine Invertebrates, and Perspectives on our Finger on the Pulse of Changes in Coastal Invertebrate Diversity; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 8 min)
2023 Season
Tuesday, February 7, 2023; 7:30 p.m.; Molly James, Ph.D. Candidate, Department of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut; Harmony of Nature – fostering connection to the environment through music; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 32 min)
Tuesday, February 21, 2023; 7:30 p.m.; Tim Pettee, Founder and President, Greens Ledge Light Preservation Society Inc.; Preserving Our Maritime History: The Epic Restoration and Bright Future of Greens Ledge Light; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 57 min)
Tuesday, March 7, 2023; 7:30 p.m.; Timothy Dale Walker, Ph.D.; Professor of History, University of Massachusetts Dartmouth; Guest Investigator, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution; Uncovering and Recentering the Maritime Underground Railroad; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 10 min)
Tuesday, March 21, 2023; 7:30 p.m.; Sarah Porter, Filmmaker; Horseshoe Crabs: How 350 Million Year Old Sea Creatures Are Vital to Our Survival; View the recorded lecture (52 minutes)
Tuesday, April 4, 2023; 7:30 p.m.; Tessa L. Getchis, Connecticut Sea Grant, University of Connecticut; Department of Extension, University of Connecticut and Zofia A. Baumann, Department of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut; Ensuring the Future Viability of Connecticut’s Natural Oyster Beds; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 11 minutes)
Tuesday, April 18, 2023; 7:30 p.m., sTo Len, Department of Sanitation Artist in Residence, NY; The Art of Water, Waste, and Wonder
2022 Season:
Tuesday, February 7, 2022; 7:30 p.m.; Kris Ohleth, Director, Special Initiative on Offshore Wind; David Bidwell, Associate Professor, Marine Affairs, University of Rhode Island; Affiliate Scholar, Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies–Potsdam; moderator: Angela Silva, Social Scientist- Fisheries & Offshore Wind, ECS Federal, Inc. In support of: NOAA Fisheries, NEFSC, Social Sciences Branch; Examining the potential opportunities and challenges for New England’s emerging offshore wind industry; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 28 minutes)
Tuesday, February 22, 2022; 7:30 p.m.; Kimia Shahi, Ph.D., Assistant Professor, Department of Art History, University of Southern California & currently serves as Kernan Brothers Environmental Fellow at the Harvard University Center for the Environment; “Uncertain Contours”: Coasts at the Confluence of Science and Art in 19th-century America; View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 23 minutes)
Tuesday, March 8, 2022; 7:30 p.m.; Heidi Dierssen, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Marine Sciences, University of Connecticut; Rethinking the Blue Marble – the Colour of the Sea and Sky; View the recorded lecture. (1 hour, missing first few minutes)
Tuesday, March 22, 2022; 7:30 p.m.; Akeia de Barros Gomes, Ph.D., Senior Curator of Maritime Social Histories, Mystic Seaport Museum & Visiting Scholar, Center for the Study of Slavery and Justice, Brown University; Maritime Connections, Maritime Voices: African and Native American Histories of New England;View the recorded lecture (1 hour, 4 minutes)
Tuesday, April 5, 2022; 7:30 p.m.; Jason Oliver Chang, Ph.D., Associate Professor of History and Asian American Studies and Director of the Asian and Asian American Studies Institute at the University of Connecticut; Alexis Dudden, Ph.D., Professor of History at the University of Connecticut; CARGO – Connecticut’s Coolie History in Graphic Media and Public School Curriculum; View the recorded lecture. (59 minutes)
Tuesday, April 19, 2022; 7:30 p.m. ; James M. Lindgren, Ph.D., Emeritus Professor, History Department, SUNY Plattsburgh; Blue Water Ports, Global Resources, and Commercial Empires: The Origins of the Nation’s Major Maritime Museums
2021 Season:
Tuesday, February 9, 2021; 7:30 p.m.; Skip Finley, Author | Historian | Speaker; A Voyage of Discovery with Skip Finley; Play recording (missing first 15 minutes)
Tuesday, February 23, 2021; 7:30 p.m.; Andrew Kahrl, Ph.D., Professor of History and African American Studies, University of Virginia; The Struggle to Reclaim Connecticut’s Coastal Commons; Play recording (1 hour, 23 minutes)
Tuesday, March 9, 2021; 7:30 p.m.; Chris Bowser, M.S., NYSDEC Hudson River Estuary Program and the Hudson River National Estuarine Research Reserve; The Hudson River Eel Project: Fish Conservation through Community Engagement; Play recording (1 hour, 20 minutes)
Tuesday, March 23, 2021; 7:30 p.m.; Beverly Goodman, Ph.D., Department Head, Department of Marine Geosciences, Charney School of Marine Sciences, University of Haifa; Ancient Tsunamis in the Mediterranean: How Past Disasters Save Lives Today; Play recording (1 hour, 16 minutes)
Tuesday, April 6, 2021; 7:30 p.m.; Prakash Kashwan, Ph.D., Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science and Co-Director of the Research Program on Economic and Social Rights, Human Rights Institute, University of Connecticut; Followed by a panel discussion with: Syma Ebbin, Ph.D., Research Coordinator, Connecticut Sea Grant College Program & Melva Treviño Peña, Ph.D., Department of Marine Affairs, University of Rhode Island; Confronting Issues of (In)Justice in Environmental and Resource Governance; Play recording (1 hour, 6 minutes)
Tuesday, April 20, 2021; 7:30 p.m.; Margaret Gibson; Connecticut State Poet Laureate, Prof. Emerita, UConn & David K. Leff; Poet, Lecturer, Former Deputy Commissioner of CT DEEP; Rousing the Ecological Imagination Through Poetry; Play recording (1 hour, 25 minutes)
2020 Coastal Perspectives Lecture Series
2019 Coastal Perspectives Lecture Series
2018 Coastal Perspectives Lecture Series
2017 Coastal Perspectives Lecture Series
2016 Coastal Perspectives Lecture Series
2015 Coastal Perspectives Lecture Series