New York State
Environmental Technical Working Group
State of the Science Workshops
The State of the Science Conference is a biennial event that brings together stakeholders for environmental and wildlife research and offshore energy development along the U.S. Atlantic coast and beyond.
About the Conference
State of the Science on Wildlife and Offshore Wind Development are hosted by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) on behalf of the Offshore Wind Environmental Technical Working Group (E-TWG) and, as of 2024, the Fisheries Technical Working Group (F-TWG) with the expansion to focus the workshop on both wildlife and fisheries.
Broad workshop goals include:
• Engaging and informing interested stakeholders about the state of knowledge regarding wildlife, fisheries, and offshore energy development, including ongoing efforts to understand, minimize, and mitigate environmental impacts
• Promoting regional coordination by sharing updates on research studies, guidelines development, and other efforts in the eastern U.S. and elsewhere
• Facilitating collaboration through expert information exchange and discussion
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The first conference was held in 2018, and it is held every two years. See here for information about past workshops.
Planning and Structure
The scientific program is planned by a Scientific Advisory Committee, which is an E-TWG Specialist Committee comprised of representatives from environmental non-profits, offshore energy developers, fisheries, and government agencies, as well as technical support staff from the Biodiversity Research Institute and Tetra Tech. The conference has grown from a two-day event in 2018 to a four-day event with options for in-person and virtual meeting attendance. Each biennial event has a focused theme that is explored through various components including symposia sessions, oral presentations, moderated panel discussions, poster sessions, lightning talks, as well as side meetings, workgroups, and workshops. Proposal and abstract submissions for the scientific program will be evaluated by the Scientific Advisory Committee.
State of the Science Conference themes have included:
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Building on a Strong Foundation: Deepening Knowledge and Finding Collaborative Solutions (2026)
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Taking an ecosystem approach: Integrating offshore energy wildlife, and fisheries (2024)
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Building on existing knowledge and emerging collaborations (2022)
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Assessing the state of the knowledge of offshore energy development's cumulative effects on wildlife and ecosystems (2020)
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Understanding the state of the science on wildlife and offshore energy development (2018)
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The conference is open to the public with prior registration, and participants include experts from academia, government, industry, and environmental non-profits. We also encourage students and recent graduates to attend, and a Student Equity Fund is available to support in-person attendance by eligible individuals from historically underrepresented groups with career interests related to offshore wind energy development and environmental/fisheries research.​​​
Photo credits: Loggerhead sea turtle © Kate Sutherland