First up, some news:

Ocean Data Stewardship 101 webinar on 8/27

We’re hosting a virtual launch party for our ocean data stewardship training materials on August 27th, at 10am PT/ 1m ET. Join us for an overview of the program, a chance to play with the toolkit, and to hear what we learned from our spring cohort. One participant said:

This was by far one of the most important and practical training programs I have attended. It gave me a clear understanding of why data stewardship is key and how essential it is to embed it into our daily work

If you can’t make it on the 27th, you can sign up here to be notified about future training dates. We’ll announce them in the newsletter too, but that list will be the first to to hear.

What else we’re thinking about

AI chatter is everywhere, but two recent pieces stood out for us:

• Why scientists should lead the shift away from AI mega data centers. Three data scientists discuss the overlapping benefits of reducing the environmental impacts of large data centers and building small, local models tailored for local solutions.

• How ocean professionals are thinking about AI. The good folks at OCTO surveyed 190 people from around the world, across ocean sectors and experience levels, to find out how they’re using AI now, what they wish AI could do, and what they’re worried about. This is possibly the first and only survey of its kind for ocean experts, and while the themes aren’t new¹ there are ocean-specific opportunities and needs that funders, businesses, and institutions should be aware of. Automation could improve ocean conservation and management, but only if people trust the results and feel confident in their skills.

We’ll close with some “muscular hope” in the shape of this piece from the American Meteorological Society about building a movement to meet the current moment. Earth science is foundational infrastructure for everyone. It will take all of us working together to reimagine, redesign, and build the information systems that let us understand and adapt to the changing planet we live on.

-Kate