Provincial Minister, students enjoy Youth and the Oceans Conference

The Marine Institute (MI) hosted more than 100 junior high and high school students for a Youth and the Oceans Conference on Thursday, Feb. 24

Thursday, February 24, 2011

The students, who were from schools across the Avalon Peninsula, took part in an event that celebrated the role of youth in marine environmental activity in Newfoundland and Labrador. The students took part in thought-provoking presentations and interactive discussions that focused on marine environmental issues representing leadership and career opportunities for youth.

“One very valuable aspect of the Youth and the Ocean Conference was that it showed the students the educational options available at the Marine Institute; options that lead to careers which allow them to make a positive impact in our province’s ocean sector,” said Glenn Blackwood, executive director, MI.

Among the speakers at the Youth and the Oceans Conference were the Honourable Clyde Jackman, Provincial Minister of Fisheries and Aquaculture; Justin Dearing, conference coordinator, MI Ocean Net; Meagan LeMessurier, a Marine Institute student who took part in an Arctic expedition with Students on Ice in 2010; and Blackwood.

The conference also included an awards presentation, youth forum and tours of the Marine Institute’s flume tank, GIS lab and Remotely Operated Vehicle simulator. Information booths were set up in the MI gymnasium by a number of like-minded groups and companies and the event included live music from Terry Rielly and face painting from Wandering Brush.

The conference was designed to engage the junior high and high school students on a number of important issues while giving them the chance to have their voices heard.

“We all need a wakeup call when it comes to living sustainably and today these youth got exactly that,” said Dearing. “The enthusiasm, excitement and energy of today’s conference has definitely left a lasting impact on everyone who attended. It’s amazing to see just how open they are to these issues and the many opportunities that lay ahead of them.”

Earlier in February, the Marine Institute brought the Youth and the Oceans Conference series to Discovery Collegiate in Bonavista and Pasadena Academy. Close to 250 students attended the conference in Bonavista on Feb. 8, with more than 150 taking part in the Pasadena conference two days later. The conferences will continue next month when the Marine Institute takes Youth and the Oceans to Marystown on March 10, St. Anthony on March 22, Makkovik on March 25 and Burgeo on March 31.

“The Youth and the Oceans Conferences have been very successful and are obviously well received by junior high and high school students across the province,” said Blackwood. “This illustrates that junior high and high school students from across the province want to learn more about the academic and career choices available in these ocean-related fields.”

The Youth and the Oceans Conferences are supported by the Gainey Foundation; the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador’s Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture and Department of Innovation, Trade and Rural Development.