2022 Oregon Chapter
American Fisheries Society
58th Annual Meeting
March 2-4, 2022
Socially distanced conferencing at its best!
Event Overview
RISING FROM THE ASHES: THE ROLE OF DISTURBANCE IN FISHERIES
The 2022 Oregon AFS Annual Meeting will be virtual again this year! We appreciate everyone’s support and responses to our member poll and believe virtual is the way to go to make the meeting safe and available for all our members and provide an opportunity to include people who can’t normally attend an in-person meeting. Building on the successes of last year, we will have plenary sessions, technical sessions, student-mentor networking, business and awards meetings, a do-it-yourself spawning run, and virtual social hours to remotely connect with our friends and colleagues around the region.
The 2022 program theme is “Rising from the Ashes: The Role of Disturbance in Fisheries”. Disturbance has shaped and continues to shape the landscapes and fisheries of the Pacific Northwest. From the Missoula floods, tectonic stream capture, volcanos, and fires in our freshwater systems to The Blob, hypoxia events, and acidification of our marine systems, our western fishes have had to know how to roll with the punches. This theme was designed to foster a deeper understanding of the disturbances affecting our aquatic friends and how they shape our watery world.
New this year: affinity groups. Want to find your peeps? To highlight the “I” in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, we want to offer some themed break rooms to help people connect. It can be hard to meet people in person, let alone in a virtual setting, so we’d like to offer an opportunity to find people you have something in common with. If you have affinity group suggestions, please contact Program Chair Chris Hirsch at presidentelect@orafs.org. We do not currently intend to host any pre-meeting workshops, but if someone is interested in organizing one please let the program chair know and we will work with you to make it happen. Your suggestions and assistance are welcomed and encouraged. Please contact Program Chair Chris Hirsch at presidentelect@orafs.org.
Virtual OR AFS 2022 will be a three-day affair, approximately ¾ of a day each day. Each day will start with a Keynote Address on one of three sub-themes for the conference (fire effects on fish, marine disturbances, and taking the long view on disturbance), proceed to technical sessions for half of each day, and then each day will include a social activity (Student-Mentor event, Poster session) to help keep us connected.
FREE REGISTRATION!
This may come as news to some of you but the Oregon Chapter of the American Fisheries Society is somewhat unique amongst AFS chapters in that we have an investment fund established and managed to provide financial security and stability to the chapter. This year we have been fortunate and our investments have performed very well. This is largely a testament to the dedication, foresight and continued commitment of the chapter members that make up the Financial Sustainability Committee. This sound financial stewardship and good fortune has put us in the enviable position to be able to offer free registration to our annual meeting.
It’s been a challenging couple years between the ongoing pandemic and social unrest. Your OR AFS ExCom and Financial Sustainability Committee felt it was a good time to give back to the membership for all you’ve overcome recently while protecting and enhancing aquatic resources in Oregon and beyond. This is also another step towards our goal of greater inclusion by removing the financial barrier to attendance and allowing us to reach out to new aquatic enthusiasts not previously involved in AFS. You will still need to register here by February 12, 2022, but that registration will come at no cost for all attendees. Please keep in mind that the Chapter will still be paying a per registrant fee so please make every effort to attend once you register. More than the financial considerations, we’d just like to see your smiling faces again.
While we don’t yet have the resources to offer a free meeting every year, OR AFS ExCom will continue to explore opportunities to reduce the financial burden of attending future meetings and provide a more inclusive space for fisheries professionals. We look forward to your feedback on this year’s meeting and encourage you to share your ideas at the Annual Business Meeting on Thursday, March 3rd. We could not be more pleased to be offering you all this wonderful opportunity!