Oregon’s Marine Reserves and Protected Areas are a coastal treasure, living laboratories that connect science and research with the management of our coastal communities critical dependency on ocean resources. But Governor Kotek’s proposed legislative budget for ODFW, which administers the Marine Reserve Program, cut out one of the most critical positions – the community engagement leader that serves as the nexus between the science and the coastal community. And she couldn’t have done it in a worse year, 2023 when the Marine Reserve decadal review landed in the Oregon legislature calling for increased investments in this coastal legacy. A treasured program and campaign of Surfrider Foundation for many years, we need your help – read on to find out how!

Please take a few minutes and send a ‘digital postcard’ to your legislator!  We need your help to save ODFW’s Marine Reserve program from funding cuts. Please ask the Joint Ways and Means Committee to include the Marine Reserve Community Engagement position in ODFW’s budget. This position is an important complement to HB 2903, a campaign of Surfrider Foundation to implement the decadal recommendations. Together they will help set Oregon’s Marine Reserve Program on the right path for the future of these special and treasured ocean places. 

The Community Engagement position provides a critical connection point between coastal communities and our Marine Reserves. Here’s what the community engagement of the program looks like, much of which we stand to lose:

TAKE ACTION AND SEND YOUR DIGITAL POSTCARD 

Please submit this ‘digital postcard’ in the body of your email by Tuesday, March 21st.