“Seeds in the Sea” Panel Discussion at State of the Coast 2025
The Oregon Kelp Alliance (ORKA) hosted a dynamic panel discussion titled “Seeds in the Sea: Building Coastal Communities Through Restorative Mariculture” at the State of the Coast conference in Coos Bay on November 15, 2025. The panel brought together diverse voices working at the intersection of kelp forest restoration, cultural stewardship, and coastal economic development.
Cultural Foundations and Traditional Knowledge
Shelley Estes, Tribal Council Representative #1 for the Coquille Indian Tribe, member of the Tribal Climate Resilience Task Force, and ORKA Board member, opened the discussion by sharing the deep cultural significance of kelp forests to the Coquille people. She brought traditional regalia featuring abalone—one of many kelp forest resources that have served as “First Foods” for generations. Shelley emphasized how kelp forests protected coastlines and served as the foundation for the “Kelp Highway” theory of coastal migration, illustrating that these ecosystems have sustained Indigenous communities for millennia.
Cara Monson, Tribal Resilience Specialist for the Coquille Indian Tribe, highlighted the Tribe’s contemporary work in Food Sovereignty and first foods. She described facilitating Tribal members obtaining scuba certification to participate in purple sea urchin removal efforts, creating opportunities for youth engagement with traditional marine resources through modern restoration techniques. The Tribe’s youth trips to Cape Arago’s South Cove exemplified this intergenerational approach to kelp forest stewardship, connecting young people with their cultural heritage while addressing current ecological challenges. She described a recent tribal youth camp trip to South Cove where tribal youth and adults conducted urchin density surveys, followed by tribal harvest of urchins which were brought to the Plank House kitchen where they were processed and used to prepare uni butter that all sampled on fry bread prepared by tribal elders. Afterward, the urchin tests (shells) were added to a nearby midden containing oyster and clam shells.
The Science: Understanding Our Kelp Forests
ORKA Director Tom Calvanese presented findings from the 2024 Oregon Kelp Forest Status Report documenting significant declines in Oregon’s bull kelp (Nereocystis luetkeana) forests and outlined ORKA’s ecosystem-based approach to restoration through the Oregon Kelp Forest Stewardship Initiative, and how kelp mariculture is linked to kelp forest restoration.
A major announcement centered on a recent scientific breakthrough: researchers at the University of British Columbia, Cornell, and the Hakai Institute definitively identified Vibrio pectenicida as the causative agent of Sea Star Wasting Disease (SSWD). This discovery, published in Nature Ecology and Evolution in August 2025, represents a turning point after over a decade of mystery. The disease devastated sunflower sea star populations by approximately 99% from Baja California to Washington’s outer coast between 2013-2016. Understanding that SSWD is caused by a temperature-sensitive bacterial infection rather than a virus opens new pathways for conservation work, including testing wild populations for disease resistance, improving captive breeding programs, and potentially developing methods to enhance sea star resilience.
From Conservation to Commerce: Restorative Mariculture
Aaron Ashdown, a Port Orford commercial crabber, shared his experience leading the Oregon Restorative Kelp Mariculture project in partnership with ORKA. The project demonstrates how fishermen can diversify their income while actively contributing to kelp forest restoration. Aaron described deploying temporary kelp cultivation moorings at sites carefully selected in collaboration with local crabbers to minimize conflicts. The project uses exclusively natural materials like manila rope, wood buoys, and glass floats, avoiding plastic entirely.
The kelp mariculture operation focuses on multiple value streams: livestock feed, biostimulants for agriculture, food products (including kelp pickles), and kelp spores and juveniles for restoration activities. This diversified approach creates economic viability while maintaining ecological integrity. Aaron emphasized how commercial fishing communities can play a central role in ecosystem recovery when projects are designed with practical, working-waterfront considerations in mind.
Jeff Griffin from the Port of Bandon presented his pioneering work with sea urchin aquaculture culture using innovative shore-based systems that are producing high-quality uni while developing co-culture techniques with Pacific dulse. Jeff’s work demonstrates the potential for restorative aquaculture that removes grazing pressure from degraded kelp forests while creating premium seafood products. His presentation included compelling images of urchin cultivation trials and uni preparation by a local chef featuring locally cultured dulse.
Building the Future Through Collaboration
Jon Bonkoski, Vice President of Coastal Communities & Fisheries at Ecotrust, presented findings from the Oregon Coastal Mariculture Collaborative’s Future Forum. The collaborative—including Ecotrust, Oregon Aquaculture Association, ORKA, Oregon Sea Grant, and The Nature Conservancy—has been working to understand expansion potential for shellfish, seaweed, and aquatic plant mariculture on the Oregon coast. ORKA’s restorative kelp mariculture project is serving as the pilot project for the collaborative.
Jon outlined key themes emerging from stakeholder engagement: technical needs (developing eco-friendly materials, reducing biofouling, sharing best practices); ecological needs (measuring ecosystem services, ensuring coexistence); regulatory streamlining (one-stop-shop permitting, multi-species allowances, pre-permitted aquaculture parks); and socioeconomic development (workforce training, public education, financial support structures).
The collaborative emphasized that Oregon has tremendous untapped potential for mariculture. With abundant water resources, research capacity, and strong local food culture, Oregon is positioned to develop a thriving mariculture sector that builds multiple forms of wealth—individual, intellectual, social, cultural, natural, built, political, and financial.
Looking Forward
The panel concluded with recognition that kelp forest restoration requires collaboration across boundaries—between Indigenous nations and scientific institutions, between conservation organizations and commercial fishermen, between researchers and coastal communities. ORKA’s approach of working at the intersection of conservation and industry, developing solutions that are both nature-based and market-based, provides a model for building resilient coastal ecosystems and economies simultaneously.
For more information about ORKA’s work, visit oregonkelp.com or contact Communication Lead Justin Myers at j.myers@saltwatersocialclub.co, or ORKA Director Tom Calvanese at tom.calvanese@oregonkelpalliance.com. Follow @oregonkelp on social media for updates on kelp forest restoration efforts along the Oregon coast.