ICSR 2026 Conference Program

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Draft program. Session times, talk order, and speakers are still being finalized and will change before October. Check back for the current version.
The 22nd International Conference on Shellfish Restoration  |  October 4–7, 2026   Shelton, WA, USA
ISRS ICSR 2026
ICSR 2026
Engaging Communities,Collaborating with Knowledge Holders,& Advancing Restorative Aquaculture
ISRSICSR 2026
ICSR 2026

Table of
Contents

Program updates after print. The current version of this program lives online, and any change made after this booklet went to press appears there first: shellfish-society.org/icsr2026/full-program.html.
QR code linking to the online ICSR 2026 program
Delegates listening during a session at ICSR 2024

Delegates at ICSR 2024, Jekyll Island, Georgia. Photograph by Trey Cooper.

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ICSR 2026

Welcome

From the Chair of ISRS

Dear Colleagues and Friends,

On behalf of the International Shellfish Restoration Society, it is my great honor to welcome you to ICSR 2026, the 22nd International Conference on Shellfish Restoration.

Since 1996, ICSR has brought together the global community of shellfish restoration practitioners (scientists, resource managers, tribal leaders, industry professionals, and community advocates) to share knowledge, forge partnerships, and advance the science and practice of restoration. This year we gather in the Pacific Northwest, in the heart of historic shellfish abundance and world-class restoration work.

ISRS was founded to ensure this community has a permanent home: a year-round network that sustains the connections forged at each conference. Whether you are a longtime ICSR participant or joining us for the first time, you are part of something important. Thank you for being here.

Dorothy Leonard
Dorothy Leonard
Chair, ISRS Board of Directors

From the Chair of ICSR 2026

Dear Shellfish Friends, one and all,

Welcome to ICSR 2026! Puget Sound Restoration Fund is honored to co-host this year’s conference with the Squaxin Island Tribe, here in South Puget Sound. Thank you so much for being here and contributing to this big, global-spanning shellfish knowledge exchange, encompassing 12 countries, 33 Tribes and Indigenous communities, and 21 states. We are excited about diving into an intensive 3-day program, spanning 149 presentations, 29 shellfish and invertebrate species, and all the beautiful, complicated, challenging aspects of shellfish restoration in a changing world.

As we work to build abundance, resilience, and species richness in our coastal waters, it is equally wonderful to emulate that richness in our human communities. To follow the ways of the oyster, so to speak: attracting new recruits, building multi-generational structure, and nurturing diverse communities. I look forward to growing our shellfish network, along with our many molluscan friends, who continue to do their good work on shorelines throughout the world.

Betsy Peabody
Betsy Peabody
Chair, ICSR 2026
Founder/Director Emeritus, Puget Sound Restoration Fund
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ICSR 2026

Schedule
At-a-Glance

ICSR 2026 at-a-glance schedule by day and time of day
Day Morning Afternoon Evening
Sunday
Oct 4
– Registration
3:00–8:00 p.m.
Welcome Reception
6:00–8:00 p.m.
Monday
Oct 5
Welcoming Address
(Chairman Kris Peters)
Keynote (Nicole Norris)
+ Sessions
Sessions Keynote (Shina Wysocki
& Kyle Lentz)
Lessons Learned Panel
& Happy Hour
5:00–6:30 p.m.
Tuesday
Oct 6
Keynotes (Chairman Leonard Forsman
& Mitchell Gibbs)
+ Sessions
Sessions
Posters & Art
4:30–6:30 p.m.
Traditional Salmon
& Clam Cookout
6:30–8:30 p.m.
Wednesday
Oct 7
Keynotes (Kura Paul-Burke
& Eric Quaempts)
Closing Remarks
+ Sessions
Field Sessions
depart 1:30–2:00 p.m.
Golf Tournament
shuttle departs 2:00 p.m.
–
Thursday
Oct 8
Post-Conference
Oyster Bed Visit
9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Native Olympia Oyster Collaborative
(NOOC) Lunch
1:00–3:00 p.m.
–

* The main conference runs Sunday, October 4 through Wednesday, October 7. Thursday, October 8 is a post-conference day featuring optional field sessions and the Native Olympia Oyster Collaborative (NOOC) lunch.

* Regarding food service, a Welcoming Reception is provided on Sunday. Breakfast is provided Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Coffee breaks are provided mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Lunches are provided Monday (buffet), Tuesday (buffet), and Wednesday (box lunches). A Happy Hour on Monday occurs during the Panel Discussion. A Traditional Salmon Cookout Dinner is provided Tuesday. Monday’s and Wednesday’s dinners are on your own.

Cured shell being returned to a restoration beach at Liberty Bay Two workers hand-picking oysters on a tideland at low water The Squaxin Island Museum building beside the water

Washington waters, from left to right: cured shell returned to the beach at Liberty Bay; hand-picking oysters on the Willapa Bay tidelands in 1969; and the Squaxin Island Museum.

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ICSR 2026

Conference
Overview

The International Conference on Shellfish Restoration (ICSR) provides a forum that draws attention to shellfish restoration, and fosters partnerships, initiatives, and the exchange of information necessary to further the science and practice of shellfish restoration. ICSR 2026 highlights the intersection of Indigenous knowledge, climate resilience, and modern restoration science.

Since the first ICSR was held on Hilton Head Island in South Carolina in 1996, this conference has been held worldwide: from the United States to Canada, Scotland, the Netherlands, Australia, and beyond. Unique in approach, ICSR fosters lasting collaborations and friendships among practitioners on the leading edge of molluscan shellfish restoration.

The 2026 conference comes to Puget Sound for the first time, co-hosted by the Squaxin Island Tribe and the Puget Sound Restoration Fund at the Squaxin Island Tribe’s Little Creek Casino Resort in Shelton, Washington. The conference will open with a Welcoming Address from Chairman Kris Peters of the Squaxin Island Tribe, honoring the deep cultural connections between the Squaxin peoples and shellfish resources.

The overall theme of ICSR 2026 is: Engaging Communities, Collaborating with Knowledge Holders, and Advancing Restorative Aquaculture. We anticipate attendees from all realms of restoration, including practitioners, researchers, growers, Indigenous communities, and natural resources managers.

The full ICSR 2024 delegation gathered outdoors for a group photograph

The delegates of ICSR 2024, Jekyll Island, Georgia.

The International Shellfish Restoration Society

After ICSR 2024, the community behind the conference set out to become more than a meeting convened anew each cycle. The International Shellfish Restoration Society (ISRS) was incorporated as a nonprofit in June 2025 to carry the conference forward and to give that community a standing home: one that can sustain the collaborations, the science, and the relationships between conferences rather than rebuilding them each time.

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ICSR 2026

Sponsors

ISRSICSR 2026
ICSR 2026

Exhibitors &
Committees

ICSR 2026 Exhibitors

Exhibitors will be located in the poster hall and available throughout the conference. The following organizations are participating as exhibitors at ICSR 2026:

Planning Committee

  • Betsy Peabody, ICSR 2026 Chair, Puget Sound Restoration Fund
  • Viviane Barry, Suquamish Tribe
  • Ryan Crim, Puget Sound Restoration Fund
  • Aaron Kornbluth, ISRS
  • Julieta Martinelli, WA Dept. of Fish & Wildlife
  • Lisa Paton, ISRS
  • Phoebe Racine, The Nature Conservancy
  • Elsa Schwartz, Puget Sound Restoration Fund
  • LaDon Swann, National Sea Grant, Aquaculture Liaison
  • Bill Taylor, Taylor Shellfish
  • Kerstin Wasson, Elkhorn Slough NERR; NOOC

Program Team

  • Julieta Martinelli, Program Chair, WA Dept. of Fish & Wildlife
  • Peter Kingsley-Smith, Co-Chair, Independent Shellfish Ecologist
  • Ryan Crim, Puget Sound Restoration Fund
  • Michael Doall, Stony Brook University
  • Philine zu Ermgassen, Native Oyster Restoration Alliance
  • Matthew Gray, Univ. of Maryland Center for Environmental Science
  • Jeff Hetrick, Alutiiq Pride Marine Institute
  • Dominic McAfee, Adelaide University
  • Betsy Peabody, Puget Sound Restoration Fund
  • Melissa Poe, Washington Sea Grant, Univ. of Washington
Delegates talking with an exhibitor at a booth in the exhibit hall Delegates gathered in conversation during a break

The exhibit hall and the spaces between sessions at ICSR 2024.

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ICSR 2026

Important Conference
Information

Registration Information

To participate in any aspect of the conference, you must be registered. Badges are required for all technical and social events. The Registration Desk is located in the Tower 2 Lobby of the Little Creek Casino Resort.

CONTINUING EDUCATION CREDITS

ICSR 2026 has been pre-approved for up to 10 Continuing Education Credits (CECs) through the Society for Ecological Restoration (SER) Certified Ecological Restoration Practitioner (CERP) program. Attendance verification is required to receive credits. Sign-in sheets will be available at the conference; attendees may also self-report using a Certificate of Completion.

For questions, contact certification@ser.org.

Keynote Presentations

Technical Program

ICSR 2026 features 15 scientific sessions with keynote presentations, panel discussions, and contributed oral, poster, and lightning talk presentations:

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ICSR 2026

Important Conference
Information

Networking Events

Welcome Reception
Sunday, October 4 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Little Creek Casino Resort

Lessons Learned Panel & Happy Hour
Monday, October 5
Sharing worst mistakes and best lessons from the field.
Panelists: Julie Barber, Boze Hancock, Jeff Hetrick, and Betsy Peabody

Poster Session & Art Show
Tuesday, October 6, 4:30–6:30 p.m.
Open poster viewing and art show, with local artists sharing shellfish-inspired photography, books, and jewelry.

Traditional Salmon & Clam Cookout
Tuesday, October 6, 6:30 p.m. onwards
A traditional salmon and clam cookout hosted by the Squaxin Island Tribe at Little Creek Casino Resort.

Field Sessions, Wednesday, October 7
Guided, site-based learning at active restoration sites, working shellfish farms, Tribal cultural sites, and conservation hatcheries across South Puget Sound, led by regional scientists and practitioners. Sessions depart between 1:30 and 2:00 p.m. Sign up during registration. Capacity is limited.

The optional Golf Tournament is a relaxed social outing for attendees; pay-at-course and not included in registration.

Optional Low Tide Field Session
Thursday, October 8, 9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. (Post-Conference)
A guided field study of natural Olympia oyster beds. Open to all registered attendees. About a 40-minute drive. Knee boots and appropriate beach attire recommended.

Olympia oysters set on cultch substrate A group of delegates outdoors at ICSR 2024 A pinto abalone in a hatchery tray

From left to right: Olympia oysters on cultch; delegates at ICSR 2024; and a pinto abalone.

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ICSR 2026

Information
for Presenters

Presentation File Submission

Bring your presentation file (PowerPoint or PDF) on a USB drive to load onto the session laptop before your session. Someone at the Registration Desk will be there to take your presentation. Do this the day before your session, or the morning of it at the latest.

Oral Presentations

In most of the sessions, fifteen minutes will be allotted for a contributed oral talk, including 12 minutes for presentation and three minutes for discussion. Several sessions, however, are organized differently. Session moderators will adhere to the appropriate time limitations established for their session. Speakers should check in with moderators at least 15 minutes prior to session start. Each room will be equipped with a projector, screen, laptop computer, and microphone.

Lightning talks are 5-minute presentations with a maximum of 5 slides. No Q&A during the session; presenters are encouraged to make themselves available during breaks. Lightning talk presenters should check in with the session moderator before the session.

Poster Presentations

Posters will be displayed in the poster hall and available for viewing throughout the conference. Each poster presenter will have access to a foam core tackboard measuring 4’ (1.2 m) high by 4’ (1.2 m) wide and pushpins will be provided.

Photographs of presentations are not allowed without the express prior consent of the presenter.

Applies to oral presentations, lightning talks, and posters.

Poster Set-Up
Sunday, October 4, 5:00 p.m. to 6:00 p.m.
Monday, October 5 and Tuesday, October 6, 7:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m., or during coffee breaks

Artist Set-Up
Artists exhibiting on Tuesday, October 6 should set up before 8:30 a.m. or during the coffee breaks.

Poster Session & Art Show
Tuesday, October 6, 4:30 p.m. to 6:30 p.m.
Poster presenters are to be present at their poster during this time.

Poster Removal
Wednesday, October 7, before 1:00 p.m.

A delegate asking a question during a panel at ICSR 2024 A speaker delivering a keynote from the podium at ICSR 2024 Delegates in conversation in front of research posters at a previous ICSR poster session

From left to right: a question from the floor, a keynote address, and a poster session at ICSR 2024.

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ICSR 2026

Schedule of Presentations
& Activities

Julieta Martinelli
A Note from the Program Chair

Welcome to ICSR 2026. Over the next three days, you’ll find a program built to reflect the full breadth of our field: from Indigenous-led restoration to hatchery science, across native oysters, mussels, and clam gardens. I’m honored to help bring this community together in the heart of the Salish Sea.

Julieta Martinelli, Ph.D.
Program Chair, ICSR 2026; Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2026

3:00–8:00 p.m.
ICSR 2026 Registration
Tower 2 Hotel Lobby, Little Creek Casino Resort
6:00–8:00 p.m.
Welcome Reception
SA-HEH-WA-MISH (Room 1)

MONDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2026

7:00 a.m.–3:15 p.m.
ICSR 2026 Registration
Tower 2 Hotel Lobby
7:00–8:30 a.m.
Breakfast
Event Center
8:30–9:15 a.m.
Plenary: Welcoming Address
Chairman Kris Peters, Squaxin Island Tribe
Event Center
9:15–9:30 a.m.
Welcome to ICSR 2026
Betsy Peabody & Dot Leonard
Event Center
9:30–10:15 a.m.
Keynote Address
Nicole Norris, Halalt First Nation
Event Center
10:15–10:45 a.m.
Coffee Break
Event Center
10:45 a.m.–12:15 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions 1
Room 1: S02 Restoring Ancestral Shellfish Mariculture • Room 2: S13 Approaches to Substrate Supplementation • Room 3: S04 Restorative Aquaculture
12:15–1:15 p.m.
Lunch (Provided)
Event Center
1:15–2:45 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions 2
Room 1: S02 Ancestral Mariculture • Room 2: S13 Substrate Supplementation & S12 Shell Recycling • Room 3: S04 Restorative Aquaculture & S10 Resilience Building, Connectivity, & Seascape Approaches
2:45–3:15 p.m.
Coffee Break
Event Center
3:15–4:45 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions 3
Room 1: S11 Outreach, Creative Comms, & Storytelling • Room 2: S12 Shell Recycling • Room 3: S10 Resilience Building, Connectivity, & Seascape Approaches
4:45–5:00 p.m.
Break
Event Center
5:00–5:15 p.m.
Keynote Remarks
Shina Wysocki & Kyle Lentz, Chelsea Farms
Event Center
5:15–6:30 p.m.
Lessons Learned Panel & Happy Hour
Event Center
6:30 p.m. onwards
Dinner on Your Own

Room names and locations are on the map at the end of this booklet.
Room 1 is SA-HEH-WA-MISH, Room 2 is SQUI-AITL, and Room 3 is STEH-CHASS.

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ICSR 2026

Schedule
(Tuesday)

TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026

7:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
ICSR 2026 Registration
Tower 2 Hotel Lobby
7:00–8:30 a.m.
Breakfast
Event Center
8:30–9:15 a.m.
Keynote Address
Chairman Leonard Forsman, Suquamish Tribe
Event Center
9:15–10:00 a.m.
Keynote Address
Mitchell Gibbs, Dunghutti Nation
Event Center
10:00–10:30 a.m.
Coffee Break
Event Center
10:30 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions 1
Room 1: S01 Indigenous-led Contemporary Restoration • Room 2: S08 Other Molluscs & Invertebrates • Room 3: S03 Hatchery Innovations, Upscaling, & Industry
12:00–1:00 p.m.
Lunch (Provided)
Event Center
1:00–2:30 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions 2
Room 1: S09 Ostrea Communities of Practice • Room 2: S08 Other Molluscs & Invertebrates • Room 3: S03 Hatchery Innovations, Upscaling, & Industry & S05 Genetics, Disease, & Biosecurity
2:30–3:00 p.m.
Coffee Break
Event Center
3:00–4:30 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions 3
Room 1: S09 Ostrea Communities of Practice • Room 2: S07 Urban Shellfish Restoration • Room 3: S05 Genetics, Disease, & Biosecurity
4:30–6:30 p.m.
Poster Session & Art Show
Event Center
6:30–8:30 p.m.
Traditional Salmon & Clam Cookout
Squaxin Island Tribe’s Little Creek Casino Resort
Delegates gathered at the ICSR 2024 welcome reception

Evening gatherings bring the ICSR community together.

Room names and locations are on the map at the end of this booklet.
Room 1 is SA-HEH-WA-MISH, Room 2 is SQUI-AITL, and Room 3 is STEH-CHASS.

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ICSR 2026

Schedule
(Wednesday
& Thursday)

WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 7, 2026

7:00–8:30 a.m.
Breakfast
Event Center
8:30–9:15 a.m.
Keynote Address
Kura Paul-Burke, Ngāti Awa, Ngāti Whakahemo, Ngāti Mākino, University of Waikato, Aotearoa New Zealand
Event Center
9:15–10:00 a.m.
Keynote Address
Eric Quaempts, Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation
Event Center
10:00–10:15 a.m.
Closing Remarks
Dot Leonard & Betsy Peabody
Event Center
10:15–10:45 a.m.
Coffee Break
Event Center
10:45 a.m.–12:15 p.m.
Concurrent Sessions
Room 1: S15 Ostrea lurida Restoration Efforts • Room 2: S06 Using Historical & Geohistorical Data • Room 3: S14 Freshwater Mussel Restoration
12:15–1:30 p.m.
Box Lunch (Provided)
All posters must be removed before 1:00 p.m.
Event Center
1:30–2:00 p.m. onwards
Field Sessions & Golf Tournament
Depart 1:30–2:00 p.m.: Olympia Oyster Company Tour, Chew Center Hatchery, Squaxin Island Museum, Kayak Paddle, Boat Tour, Golf Tournament. See the Field Sessions listing on page 9 for details.

THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2026: POST-CONFERENCE

8:00–9:00 a.m.
Breakfast on Your Own
9:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.
Oyster Bed Visit
A guided field study of natural Olympia oyster beds. Open to all registered attendees.
North Bay, Case Inlet (~40-minute drive by shuttle bus). Knee boots and appropriate beach attire recommended.
1:00–3:00 p.m.
NOOC Lunch
Native Olympia Oyster Collaborative (NOOC) networking lunch.
Chelsea Farms Restaurant

Thursday, October 8 is a post-conference day. Participation in the low tide field session requires registration.

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ICSR 2026

Keynote
& Plenary
Speakers

Chairman Kris Peters
Welcoming Address, Monday, October 5

Chairman Kris Peters

Squaxin Island Tribe
Kristopher K. Peters has served as Chairman of the Squaxin Island Tribal Council since 2020, leading a nation whose identity, culture, and economy have been inseparable from shellfish for thousands of years. The Squaxin Island people, known as the People of the Water, have harvested from the tidal flats of South Puget Sound under treaty rights guaranteed by the 1854 Medicine Creek Treaty. Chairman Peters has been an active voice in Congress for tribal shellfish funding and access, and under his leadership the tribe secured the return of 125 acres of ancestral tidelands on Little Skookum Inlet, some of the most productive shellfish beds in the region. He also serves as an Adjunct Professor at The Evergreen State College. We are honored to welcome Chairman Peters to open ICSR 2026 on the traditional lands of the Squaxin Island people.
Chairman Leonard Forsman
Keynote Address, Tuesday, October 6

Chairman Leonard Forsman

Suquamish Tribe
Leonard Forsman has served as Chairman of the Suquamish Tribe since 2005, guiding the Tribe’s work to restore and protect the health of the Salish Sea. The Suquamish people have depended on shellfish such as geoduck, oysters, clams, and more, as a treaty right and a cornerstone of cultural and economic life since time immemorial. The Suquamish Tribe established Suquamish Seafoods in 1996 following a federal ruling reaffirming tribal treaty rights to half of the harvestable shellfish in their traditional fishing grounds, and has pursued active geoduck and oyster cultivation, Manila clam enhancement, and habitat restoration throughout their usual and accustomed areas. Chairman Forsman also serves as a Regent of the University of Washington, President of the Affiliated Tribes of Northwest Indians, and is a recognized leader in tribal governance and Salish Sea stewardship.
Nicole (Coly) Norris
Keynote Address, Monday, October 5

Nicole (Coly) Norris

Halalt First Nation, British Columbia
Ala̱g̱a̱mił Nicole “Coly” Norris is a member of the Xeáltxw, Halalt First Nation, and one of the most respected Indigenous knowledge holders working in Pacific Northwest shellfish and clam garden restoration. With more than 25 years in the aquaculture industry, she serves as an aquaculture specialist and knowledge holder for the Hul’q’umi’num peoples, and has earned the affectionate title “clam queen” for her exceptional work reviving ancient intertidal clam gardens along the British Columbia coast. Coly has worked with researchers to document more than 50 clam garden walls in B.C. (ancient rock-walled terraces built by coastal First Nations to enhance shellfish productivity), and has led active restoration of several within her traditional territory. Her approach challenges academic partners to move beyond the lab bench and genuinely connect with the environments they study, centering Indigenous stewardship, and community access to traditional foods.
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Keynote & Plenary
Speakers continued

Mitchell Gibbs
Keynote Address, Tuesday, October 6

Mitchell Gibbs

Dunghutti Nation, University of Sydney
Mitchell Gibbs is a Dunghutti man through kinship and postdoctoral researcher in geosciences at the University of Sydney, working at the intersection of Traditional Knowledge and Western science to restore shellfish reefs and reimagine coastal management. Raised near Willawarrin in the Dunghutti nation, he has spent years in conversation with Elders along Australia’s eastern coast, drawing on oral histories and traditional ecological knowledge to develop community-driven approaches to oyster reef restoration in Gamay (Botany Bay). His work with the Gamay Rangers and La Perouse Local Aboriginal Land Council has demonstrated how centering Indigenous communities, not consulting them, produces more durable and meaningful restoration outcomes. In 2025, Gibbs received the Australian Academy of Science Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Scientist Award. His current research includes cross-continental collaboration with Coast Salish communities in the Pacific Northwest, making his participation at ICSR 2026 a natural bridge between Indigenous-led restoration on opposite sides of the Pacific.
Kura Paul-Burke
Keynote Address, Wednesday, October 7

Kura Paul-Burke

Ngāti Awa, Ngāti Whakahemo, Ngāti Mākino, Aotearoa New Zealand
Kura Paul-Burke is a Māori marine scientist whose work braids mātauranga Māori (Indigenous knowledge) with Western marine science to restore degraded kaimoana (seafood) populations across Aotearoa New Zealand. Based at the University of Waikato, she is best known for leading the mātauranga-led restoration of traditional kuku (green-lipped mussel) beds in Ōhiwa Harbour, where hapū- and iwi-driven monitoring reversed a decades-long collapse and returned a culturally vital species to the harbour. Her approach centers the authority of hapū and iwi as knowledge holders and decision-makers, and her methods are now being replicated by other scientists and communities around the motu. Her participation at ICSR 2026 extends the conference’s Indigenous-led restoration dialogue across the Pacific to the Māori world.
Eric Quaempts
Keynote Address, Wednesday, October 7

Eric Quaempts

Director of Natural Resources, Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation
Eric is an enrolled member of the Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation (CTUIR). As Director of CTUIR’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) since 2004, Eric has developed their First Foods management approach, implementing these practices across DNR’s River and Upland Visions. Eric served on the Oregon Watershed Enhancement Board for nearly eight years, including five as Co-Chair, and for eight years on the Oregon Water Resources Commission, including 15 months as Commission Chair. In August of 2023, the Ecological Society of America recognized Eric with its 2023 “Regional Policy Award.” The CTUIR is the first Tribal organization, and Eric the first Tribal member, to receive the award in its 16-year history. He has also been recognized by the Potlatch Foundation (2011 Billy Frank Jr. award) and Eco Trust (2014) for Indigenous leadership. Eric earned his B.S. in Wildlife Science from Oregon State University in 1990. His keynote brings First Foods management and freshwater mussel restoration to ICSR 2026.
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Keynote & Plenary
Speakers continued

Shina Wysocki
Kyle Lentz
Keynote Address, Monday, October 5

Shina Wysocki & Kyle Lentz

Chelsea Farms & Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association
Chelsea Farms was established in 1987 when Linda and John Lentz started their adventures in sustainable shellfish farming. Their legacy continues under the management of the next generation, Shina Wysocki and Kyle Lentz, who farm geoducks, Olympia oysters, Pacific oysters, Kumamoto oysters, and Manila clams. The Lentz family has always practiced organic sustainable farming with an environmental obligation to the South Sound and Pacific Northwest as a whole. Shina and Kyle created Chelsea Farms Oyster Bar in downtown Olympia to share their passion for locally grown shellfish while holding true to their family legacy. Kyle currently serves as President of Pacific Coast Shellfish Growers Association, and owns Neptune Seafood, a shellfish wholesale company. Shina is the current President of Experience Olympia and Beyond, and the past president of Olympia Downtown Alliance.
A dense bed of blue mussels, Mytilus edulis
Juvenile pinto abalone, Haliotis kamtschatkana, in a captive breeding tank

Restoration reaches across species and regions: (top) a blue mussel bed, and
(bottom) juvenile pinto abalone raised for release.

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Session
Descriptions

S01: Indigenous-led Contemporary Restoration

Chairs: Julie Barber & Ryan Crim

Indigenous communities are leading shellfish restoration efforts that address ecological degradation and revitalize cultural practices. This session highlights Indigenous-led projects that integrate cultural stewardship, collaborative research, and co-governance frameworks.

S02: Restoring Ancestral Shellfish Mariculture

Chairs: Marco Hatch & Melissa Poe

Indigenous Nations are reviving ancestral mariculture systems to increase food sovereignty and biological diversity. This session showcases initiatives braiding community knowledge and professional research to steward place-based cultural ecosystems such as clam and sea gardens.

S03: Hatchery Innovations, Upscaling, & Industry

Chair: Matthew Gray

Advances in hatchery and husbandry techniques that improve shellfish production, yield, and resilience. Presentations explore production analytics, hatchery network development, and innovations in logistics and implementation.

S04: Restorative Aquaculture

Chair: Tiffany Waters

Farming practices that deliver measurable ecosystem benefits: water filtration, habitat creation, carbon sequestration, and nutrient remediation. This session bridges commercial aquaculture and ecological restoration.

S05: Genetics, Disease, & Biosecurity

Chair: Louis Plough

The intersection of population genetics, disease dynamics, and biosecurity risks in shellfish restoration. Speakers address genetic variation in resilience, selective breeding, and practical biosecurity measures.

S06: Using Historical and Geohistorical Data to Inform Restoration Practices

Chairs: Greg Dietl & Loren McClenachan

This session explores how diverse records of the past (including time-averaged shell deposits, middens, and archival documents) can inform the restoration, management, and conservation of shellfish resources. Contributions will highlight how long-term baselines derived from these sources provide critical context for understanding past population and habitat conditions and changes over time. By integrating these insights with modern monitoring records, the session emphasizes data-driven strategies for improving the long-term success of shellfish restoration and habitat management.

S07: Urban Shellfish Restoration

Chairs: Katie Mosher, Carolyn Khoury, & Tanasia Swift

Urban shellfish restoration and the role of interdisciplinary practitioners in restoring urban coastal ecosystems. Multi-sector collaborations and creative approaches to working in urban waters.

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Session
Descriptions
continued

S08: Restoration of Other Molluscs & Invertebrates

Chair: Jeff Hetrick

Technologies for restoration of species other than oysters and clams, including other bivalves, invertebrates, crustaceans, and echinoderms. Creating habitat and outstocking strategies.

S09: Lessons Learned from Ostrea Communities of Practice

Chair: Kerstin Wasson

Regional communities of practice supporting recovery of native flat oysters (Ostrea spp.). Experts highlight how regional perspectives and collaboration support oyster recovery across continents.

S10: Resilience Building, Connectivity, & Seascape Approaches

Chairs: Carter Smith & Stephanie Valdez

Research and restoration strategies that connect habitat patches into durable, self-sustaining metapopulations, including larval connectivity modeling, seascape-scale site selection, and approaches for building resilience.

S11: Outreach, Creative Communications, & Storytelling

Chair: Phoebe Racine

Real-world examples of storytelling and outreach that have helped spark meaningful community connection to shellfish restoration. The first half focuses on inspiration; the second half is hands-on storyboard development.

S12: Shell Recycling

Chair: Simon Branigan

Shell recycling as the cornerstone of shellfish reef restoration. Collection, processing, curing, storage, and deployment at scale, including biosecurity considerations, community involvement, and regulatory frameworks.

S13: Approaches to Substrate Supplementation

Chair: Peter Kingsley-Smith

Provision of suitable substrate for restoring dense assemblages of bivalve molluscs. Alternative settlement substrates used to garner ecosystem services including habitat provisioning, water quality improvement, and nature-based shoreline protection.

S14: Freshwater Mussel Restoration

Chair: Alexa Maine

Conservation, propagation, and reintroduction of freshwater mussels, among the most imperiled groups of organisms in North America, with an emphasis on partnerships across Tribes, agencies, and community organizations.

S15: Ostrea lurida Restoration Efforts

Chair: Danielle Zacherl

A focused, lightning-talk session on Olympia oyster (Ostrea lurida) restoration.

Oral & Poster Presentation Abstracts

All 149 abstracts are online rather than in this booklet, which keeps it to 20 printed pages: shellfish-society.org/documents/icsr2026-abstracts.html

Program updates after print: shellfish-society.org/icsr2026/full-program.html

QR code linking to the ICSR 2026 abstracts booklet

Venue Maps

Interior plan showing the Skookum Creek Event Center and the SA-HEH-WA-MISH, SQUI-AITL and STEH-CHASS meeting rooms

Property Map (Interior)

Sessions run in the Skookum Creek Event Center.
Room 1 is SA-HEH-WA-MISH, Room 2 is SQUI-AITL, and Room 3 is STEH-CHASS.

Property map of the Little Creek Casino Resort grounds, showing the Skookum Creek Event Center at lower right

Property Map (Exterior)

Little Creek Casino Resort
91 WA-108, Shelton, WA 98584
littlecreek.com  |  (360) 427-7711

Photographs from ICSR 2024 by Trey Cooper; earlier conference photographs from the ISRS archive.
Willapa Bay photograph by Bob Williams, NOAA Fisheries Collection.
Squaxin Island Museum photograph by the Squaxin Island Tribe, CC BY-SA 3.0.
Blue mussel bed by Olivier Dugornay, Ifremer, CC BY 4.0. Pinto abalone by Bloodshot20, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Printed on 20% recycled paper by Nisqually Post & Print,
owned by the Nisqually Tribe’s Medicine Creek Enterprise Corporation.

© 2026 International Shellfish Restoration Society  |  shellfish-society.org
Tax ID (EIN): 39-2829151