Ocean productivity, ecosystems and climate change — those topics are big in debates these days among scientists and coastal residents.

Those will be part of the discussion in a “The State of the Oceans” talk by Dr. John McGowan, a leading international authority on the relationship between climate change and the sea in Coos Bay this month.

CoastWatch is sponsoring the free talk at 7 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 28, in Eden Hall, Room 1, on the Southwestern Oregon Community College campus, 1988 Newmark Ave., Coos Bay.

 McGowan was a professor of oceanography at Scripps Institution of Oceanography for 40 years and is a research professor there, a press release said. His research interests focus on the large-scale interactions between climate and the physics and biology of the ocean. He is an oft-quoted leader in attempts to understand how ocean productivity and ecosystems are affected by variations in climate, and is particularly interested in long-term changes in the California Current and in the North Pacific.  

His talk will survey what people know about the state of the oceans, based on a lifetime of research, a press release said. (He also happens to be a CoastWatcher, having adopted Mile 113 near his second home in Bandon.)

This month, CoastWatch also is co-sponsoring the Sharing the Coast Conference on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 16-17, at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport.

The conference will begin at 9:30 a.m. Registration will begin at 9.  Talks on Saturday will cover such topics as beach ecology, invasives species of the coast, and beachcombing for fun and science. These presentations are free and open to the public; no pre-registration is necessary.

The conference, also sponsored by Northwest Aquatic and Marine Educators, will feature a number of workshops on such topics as climate change, invasive species, Native American cultural sites, tidepool ecology and interpreting shoreline science for the public. On Sunday, a number of field trips will be offered, featuring tidepools, estuaries, a behind-the-scenes tour of the Oregon Coast Aquarium and a marine debris scavenger hunt.  For those wishing to participate in workshops and field trips, there will be a conference fee of $30 ($15 for members of the sponsoring organizations).

CoastWatch is a project of the Oregon Shores Conservation Coalition.

For more information, call Phillip Johnson, CoastWatch director, at (503) 238-4450, or e-mail orshores@teleport.com.