32nd Annual Sound Waters University Returns to Coupeville Feb. 7

Island County’s long-running marine-education conference will convene in Coupeville on Saturday, Feb. 7, offering a full day of speakers, electives and hands-on outings that aim to deepen local understanding of the Salish Sea and support Sound Water Stewards’ community programs. The 32nd annual Sound Waters University runs 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Coupeville High School, 501 S Main St, and includes a slate of expert-led sessions on marine food webs, threats such as ocean acidification and invasive European green crabs, and the role of Indigenous knowledge in stewardship.

Florian Graner, the organization’s new executive director and a marine biologist and filmmaker, opens the program as keynote speaker. Graner is the creator of the award-winning documentary "Orcas – Life in Black and White" and has taught at the conference in past years; Whidbeynewstimes notes he previously gave the keynote in 2018. Graner provided recent photographs of orcas along Whidbey shores (photo credit: Photos by Florian Graner - NMFS Permit #26599) and framed part of the conference’s tone toward constructive action. “We don’t always have to focus on the negative,” Graner said. “That’s the essence of it.”

The closing keynote will be delivered by Elin Kelsey, an award-winning, international author and speaker and the author of How To Be Hopeful. Her presentation is billed as a data-based case for hope in environmental work, creating a deliberate bookend to Graner’s opening message.

Organizers say the one-day program includes 20 elective class options and an exhibit area featuring roughly 30 environmental non-profit exhibitors, giving Island County residents a chance to connect with local stewardship groups. Elective topics called out in program materials include seabirds, river otters, invasive European green crabs and ocean acidification. All who purchase a ticket will have access to recordings of every class after the event.

Tickets were listed at $70, which covers admission to the two keynote speakers and two elective classes; a $30 add-on was offered for optional field trips on Sunday, Feb. 8. WhidbeyCamanoIslands reported limited space and a January 31 registration deadline for the event and field-trip add-ons, and Whidbeynewstimes emphasized there will be no virtual attendance via Zoom this year. Sources described tickets as selling fast, underscoring demand for in-person learning opportunities on Whidbey Island.

For local residents, the program combines practical science with community action: ticket revenue supports Sound Water Stewards’ education, community science and stewardship work throughout Island County, and field trips provide place-based context for classroom sessions. The conference’s theme, “Tracing Life through the Salish Sea,” highlights how species, habitats and communities are interconnected and how local stewardship choices feed into larger ecosystem outcomes.

What comes next for readers is immediate: check with Sound Water Stewards about remaining seats, field-trip availability and access to class recordings, and consider how the conference’s focus on food webs and Indigenous knowledge can inform local volunteer efforts, shoreline stewardship and community science projects in the months ahead.