Program and schedule
Summit focus
Our focus for the Pacific Seaweed Summit is to:
- Uphold the sector’s responsibility toward economic reconciliation while honouring Indigenous self-determination
- Learn from each other and create common understanding of the current state of the sector
- Identify gaps within the sector and effective paths forward in key sector areas:
- Products, processing and market fit
- Standards, policy and environmental Impact
- Workforce and training
- Build sector connections and capacity
Schedule
The tentative schedule for the summit can be found below. More details will be provided closer to the summit date.
Panel descriptions
Panel 1: State of the Seaweed Sector
This panel will provide an overview of where the seaweed sector is right now – in BC and in North America more broadly. Panelists will discuss the challenges and bottlenecks facing the sector, and will share their outlooks on the future of the seaweed sector.
Moderator: Celine Trojand
Panelists: Mark Smith, Desiree Lawson, Sarah Gutzmann, Jennifer Clark, and Kendall Barbery.
Panel 2: Environmental Stewardship
Panelists will discuss the environmental benefits and impacts of the seaweed sector, and how to grow a sustainable, climate-resilient seaweed sector while protecting our wild seaweed resources.
Moderator: Chief Chris Roberts
Panelists: Tom Campbell, Natascia Tamburello, Kylee Pawluk, and Ayla Brown
Panel 3: Seaweed Processing Infrastructure
Panelists will discuss missing linkages along the seaweed value chain. The discussion will include actions that can be taken to fill processing gaps and decrease the cost of seaweed stabilization.
Moderator: Maurjta Prato
Panelists: Matt Obee, Shaelynne Bood, and Spencer Serin
Panel 4: Investment and Partnership
This panel discussion will help seaweed enterprises understand the funding landscape (both private and public investment) and how to foster business partnerships and investment in the BC seaweed sector.
Moderator: Karen Guinan
Panelists: Majid Hajibeigy, Mike Williamson, Ashley Callister, and Tom Rudolph
Panel 5: Value-Added Product Development
The panel discussion will focus on how we can use BC seaweed biomass to create valuable and sustainable products through secondary processing. Experts spanning various processing and manufacturing pathways will share successes, challenges, and outlooks for seaweed product development.
Moderator: Naser Arda
Panelists: Eric Warner, Angela Willard, Ranah Chavoshi and Stevie Dennis