One of the largest migrations in all of human history has been the migration to the coast. Most of this took place during a period of relatively stable sea level, but that is changing. Sea level is rising, and rising rapidly, and coastal storms superimposed upon this higher sea level are taking an increased toll on coastal communities—both human and natural. This is a collision that will continue for decades, perhaps centuries, and the challenge is to find ways to increase the resilience of coastal communities.

Moderator Jerry Schubel, Aquarium of the Pacific president and CEO, will explore what’s in store for our coastal communities with Doug Marcy, coastal hazards specialist at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Coastal Services Center in Charleston, South Carolina, and Jon Dohlin, executive director of the New York Aquarium on Coney Island. Marcy has spent more than eleven years working on storm surge assessments, sea level rise visualizations, and coastal hazards assessment projects contributing to more disaster resilient communities. Dohlin’s aquarium suffered extensive damage during Superstorm Sandy, which came ashore in late October 2012. The New York Aquarium reopened to the public in May 2013. The New York Aquarium and other aquariums in the Coastal Ecosystem Learning Center network are working together to explore how these institutions can help make coastal communities more resilient to the coming collision of people and the sea.

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This speaking engagement will be streamed live via the web. It's free and you can participate in the Q&A session at the end via Twitter. Times posted are in Pacific Time. Please note that if you tune in early, you may see either a placeholder image or another scheduled guest speaker engagement.