Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium

Ronald C. Baird speaks at the 5th Baird Symposium.

In 2006, the annual Sea Grant Science Symposium was renamed in honor of Ronald C. Baird, retired National Sea Grant director. More.

Baird Symposia provide a forum for researchers, resource managers, and stakeholders to discuss the state of the science in various areas important to Rhode Island coastal communities, ecosystems, fisheries, and beyond. Below are links to materials and websites from these symposia.

• 6th Annual Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium, Creating Vibrant Waterfronts in Rhode Island. October 19-20, 2007. University of Rhode Island Graduate School of Oceanography. Funded by Rhode Island Sea Grant, the R.I. Coastal Resources Management Council, the URI Coastal Institute, Prince Charitable Trusts, R.I. Statewide Planning, and the Urban Land Institute. More information.


• 5th Annual Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium, The Evolution of Ecosystem Based Management: From Theory to Practice. October 19-20, 2006. Roger Williams University School of Law, Bristol. Funded by Rhode Island Sea Grant, Roger Williams University, and the URI Department of Marine Affairs.
  • Ecosystem Based Management resources (pdf)
  • Papers from invited speakers
  • Fletcher, K. et al. Island Press. (book title and initial outline of product agreed upon; book proposal in prep.)


• 4th Annual Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium, Lobsters as Model Organisms for Interfacing Behavior, Ecology, and Fisheries. July 14, 2005. Funded by Rhode Island Sea Grant, Maine Sea Grant, and the Darden Foundation.
  • Castro et al. in prep., due 2007. Lobsters as model organisms for interfacing behavior, ecology, and fisheries. Journal of Crustacean Biology.


• 3rd Annual Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium, State of Science Knowledge of Nutrients in Narragansett Bay. November 17-18, 2004. Funded by Rhode Island Sea Grant, the URI Coastal Institute, the Rhode Island Foundation, the Narragansett Bay Commission, the R.I. Department of Environmental Management, the Narragansett Bay Estuary Program Coastal Training Program, and EPA Region I.
  • Rhode Island Sea Grant. 2005. State of Science on Nutrients in Narragansett Bay: Findings and Recommendations from the Rhode Island Sea Grant 2004 Science Symposium. Download pdf.
  • Desbonnet et al. in press, due 2007. Science for Ecosystem-based Estuarine Management: Narragansett Bay in the 21st Century. Springer Series in Environmental Management.


• 2nd Annual Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium, Shallow Marine Ecosystems of Southern Rhode Island. December 9, 2002, and January 2003. Funded by Rhode Island Sea Grant. Part I: Hydrology, nutrient & bacteria dynamics. Part II: Sediment dynamics, habitat changes & fish resources


• 1st Annual Ronald C. Baird Sea Grant Science Symposium, Urban Aquaculture. Funded by the Office of Sustainable Development of NOAA and Rhode Island Sea Grant.
  • Costa-Pierce, B.A. et al. Editors. 2005. Urban Aquaculture. CABI Publishing Co., Wallingford, U.K.