The 2019 Chesapeake Bay Report Card will feature new indicators that assess watershed health as well as tidal Bay health

The Chesapeake Bay Report Card will include new watershed indicators. As part of the revisions to the Chesapeake Bay Report Card this year, IAN hosted a two-hour webinar for stakeholders to consider the proposed indicators that were in development. The workshop was very well-attended by stakeholders from all over the watershed. Through a lively discussion by video conference, and through the use of the chat function, stakeholders generated great feedback and recommendations on how to proceed. This year, the Chesapeake Bay Report Card will unveil additional indicators that assess the health of the watershed, for the first time in its 14-year history. The report card will be released on May 19. Stay tuned!

UMCES and USGS kick off a new science synthesis project. This project aims to translate and synthesize existing USGS scientific research and knowledge to inform conservation and restoration in the Chesapeake Bay watershed and other critical landscapes. Subject matter experts will convene virtually to develop and draft a newsletter summarizing nutrient trends in the Chesapeake Bay watershed. Participants represent UMCES , USGS , and the U.S. EPA Chesapeake Bay Program .

Facilitating a virtual Subject Matter Expert workshop. SEACAR is an ongoing project between IAN and the Florida Department of Environmental Protection . At this point in the project it was necessary to run a workshop for the subject matter expert team to review the results of preliminary assessment analyses. Ideally, a 2-day meeting with this much material to cover, and which involves 45+ participants, would be conducted in person. Given the circumstances, IAN hosted and facilitated the full workshop virtually—and it was a success! The SEACAR team has a clear path forward and participants felt the workshop accomplished its goals.

 IAN and UMCES get creative during quarantine. To foster a spirit of community, UMCES's Chesapeake Biological Laboratory began a "Creativity Challenge." The UMCES community was asked to take photos that spell UMCES without using any actual letters. The winner of this challenge was IAN graduate student Suzi Spitzer. Great job, Suzi!