The St. John’s event of MI Ocean Net’s 2013 Youth and the Oceans Conference series will be held on Friday, May 10, at the Marine Institute (MI), Ridge Road campus.

The event will take place at 9 a.m. in MI’s Hampton Hall. Carey Bonnell, head of MI’s School of Fisheries, will provide opening remarks and there will be a presentation by keynote speaker, Donovan Taplin, Students on Ice Ambassador.

This year’s conference theme is Making a Difference Starts HERE.

Media are invited to attend.

Students will be provided facility tours of MI’s Centre for Marine Simulation’s full motion bridge simulator, the Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Resources’ flume tank and the Centre for Fisheries Ecosystems Research’s laboratory.

An Oceans Expo will be held in MI’s gymnasium which includes exhibitions from Memorial’s Ocean Sciences Centre, the Petty Harbour Mini Aquarium, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans, the Department of Fisheries and Aquaculture, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador- Office of Youth Engagement, Suncor Energy, East Coast Trail Association, MI Recruitment, Ocean Quest, YMCA Summer Work Student Exchange Program, Teddy Bear Productions, Wandering Brush Face Painting and Sassy Tuna Art and Caricatures.

MI Ocean Net delivers an annual series of youth conferences, engagement and leadership development projects which bring together hundreds of students from schools in key marine areas of the northern, southern, eastern and western regions of the province.

For more information, please contact Naomi Osborne, public relations and communications officer, Fisheries and Marine Institute of Memorial University, at (709) 778-0677 or Naomi.Osborne@mi.mun.ca.