Action: OOIFB-2026-01 (ONGOING) – Support the 2026 Imaging FlowCytobot (IFCB) Webinar Series. As a follow up to the June 2025 IFCB Community Focus Group, a webinar series is planned to further engage this dynamic, international community. The OOIFB-ASO will help with coordination of online planning committee meetings and then the technical delivery of the webinars using URI’s WebEx platform. Lastly, registration links and then archived videos and other resources are posted to the OOIFB website (https://ooifb.org/meetings/2026-ifcb-webinar-series/).
Action Taken:
- October 3, 2025 – A subcommittee is convened to begin the planning process for a 2026 IFCB webinar series. Planning committee members, who all attended the June 2025 IFCB event, include Melissa Carter (UCSD) Megan Ladds (ODU), Maria Kavanaugh (OSU), Antoinetta Quigg (TAMUG), and Holly Morin (OOIFB-ASO). Everyone attended the 2025 IFCB Community Focus Group event at UNC, Wilmington.
- January 27, 2026 – Details for the 2026 ImagingFlow Cytobot (IFCB) Webinar Series are finalized and announced. Two spring and two fall webinars will take place in 2026. The first spring webinar will provide an overall series introduction, and then an overview of IFCB best practices. The second webinar would focus on time/moored based IFCBs (connecting back to the Pioneer MAB Array). Fall webinars would look at ship based IFCBs and/or highlight lab-based studies. The OOIFB will provide virtual support/host the webinars via WebEx.
- March 18, 2026 – The OOIFB announces its efforts to support a 4-part webinar series focused on the Imaging FlowCytobot (IFCB), a submersible imaging flow cytometer that uses a combination of video and flow cytometric technology to capture images of microscopic, aquatic organisms for identification and to measure chlorophyll fluorescence and light scattering associated with each image. An IFCB is deployed on the central surface mooring as part of the Coastal Pioneer Mid-Atlantic Bight Array, and data is available for research and educational purposes. All webinars will be recorded and posted to the OOIFB website (https://ooifb.org/meetings/2026-ifcb-webinar-series/). The 2026 IFCB Webinar Series is a deliverable identified during the June 2025 OOIFB Community Focus Group centered on the IFCB.
- March 20, 2026 – The 2026 IFCB Webinar Series begins with Webinar #1: ImagingFlow Cytobot (IFCB) Introduction and Overview of Best Practices. The webinar featured presentations from Tom Fougere (McLane Research Laboratories), and Sophie Clayton (National Oceanography Centre).
- May 8, 2026 – The IFCB Webinar Series planning committee meets and determines potential presenters and a timeline for the second webinar in the 2026 series.
- July 2, 2026 – An IFCB Webinar Series save the date is shared through the OOI Monthly Newsletter. The second webinar in the 4-parts series will take place at 12pm ET on July 30, 2026. The webinar will focus on mooring deployments, and will feature presentations from Kylene Cooley (WHOI-OOI) and Kasia Kenitz (Southern California Coastal Ocean Observing System).
- July 20, 2026 – The second webinar in the 4-part, 2026 IFCB Webinar Series took place. This webinar focused on Timed/Moored IFCB Deployments and featured presentations by Kylene Cooley and Kasia Kenitz on IFCB deployments on the OOI-Pioneer MAB Array (Mid-Atlantic US) and the Del Mar Mooring (California IFCB Network), respectively. Over 50 individuals participated in this second webinar.
Action: OOIFB-2026-02 (ONGOING) – Updating the OOIFB Website (https://ooifb.org/) and porting it over to a new WordPress theme and framework. The OOIFB website, with crosslinks to the NSF OOI website, is a key tool in providing the science community, educators, and the public with the latest information about OOIFB activities, initiatives, and announcements, as well as updates from NSF and the OOI Program. The website has grown significantly since it was first launched, and is now in need of a distinct refresh to remain current and visually engaging. The behind-the-scenes infrastructure also needs to be updated (via WordPress), on the server-side so that the website can function properly and remain secure. The OOIFB webmaster consistently maintains the website and applies security patches and updates as necessary to the current website.
Action Taken:
- January 28, 2026 – The OOIFB Webmaster and OOIFB-ASO Communications Student Employee began discussions on website needs and updates. The ASO student and ASO-PI engage in consistent communications about website updates and next steps.
- March 27, 2026 – A development website is created to begin work on updating the OOIFB’s online presence. New themes and content structure will be tested on the “dev site” before an updated OOIFB website is released in the beginning of 2027.
Action: OOIFB-2026-03 (ONGOING)– Host a Community Workshop focused on the NSF OOI Global Arrays.*
Action Taken:
- February 18, 2026 – the Planning Committee for the 2026 OOIFB Community Workshop on the OOI Global Arrays is finalized. Members of the planning committee include:
- Dr. Hilary Palevsky (Boston College; OOIFB Member as of June 2026)
- Dr. Heather Benway (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution)
- Dr. Junhong Liang (Florida State University; OOIFB Member)
- Dr. Sarah Purkey (University of California, San Diego)
- Dr. Sarah Gille ((University of California, San Diego, Scripps)
- Dr. Meghan Cronin (NOAA)
- Dr. Al Plueddemann (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution; OOI-CGSN)
- Amber Coogan (Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, OOI-Communications)
- George Voulgaris (NSF)
- Dr. Dax Soule (Queens College; OOIFB Chair)
- Holly Morin (University of Rhode Island, Graduate School of Oceanography; OOIFB-ASO)
- March 17, 2026 – The Planning Committee for the 2026 OOIFB Community Workshop convenes its first virtual planning meeting. Additional planning committee members include OOI-CGSN team members Stace Beaulieu, Andrew Reed, and Peter Brickley. Virtual planning meetings continue bi-weekly, as possible.
- April 10, 2026 – The OOIFB announces its 2026 Community Workshop, which will take place August 26-28, 2026, at the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography (Narragansett, RI), and will focus on current and future science and education initiatives that can be addressed using data from the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) Global Arrays (high-latitude, open-ocean observation systems: Irminger Sea, Station Papa, Argentine Basin, Southern Ocean). Interested individuals were invited to apply to participate.
- May 29, 2026 – the application to participate in the OOIFB’s August 2026 Community Workshop closes.
- June 15, 2026 – Given NSF’s descoping plan for the OOI, the Planning Committee for the 2026 OOIFB Community Workshop decided to postpone the August workshop, reevaluate activities, and plan another community event in the near future. All individuals who have registered to participate in the workshop are notified of this change.
- June 23, 2026 – The Planning Committee meets via Zoom to discuss next steps with regards to the Community Workshop. During this virtual meeting, it is decided to:
- Potentially host a targeted event prior to AGU 2026 in San Francisco, CA. This event will be broader in scope than the originally envisioned Community Workshop and would build off the momentum of the 2026 Roundtable on Ocean Observing.
- Promote and support parallel NSF Dear College Letter (DCL) community engagement, once the DCL is announced.
- Expand the planning committee to include individuals from other observing systems/programs, especially those that participated in the May 2026 Roundtable on Ocean Observing.
Action: OOIFB-2026-04 (COMPLETE) – Announce a Call for Applications to fill two open positions on the OOIFB.
Action Taken:
- April 15, 2026 – The OOIFB announces a call for applications to fill two membership positions that will open as of June 1, 2026, and run through May 31, 2029.
- May 22, 2026 – The call for applications closed.
- June 10, 2026 – The OOIFB welcomes two new members: Dr. Hilary Palevsky and Dr. Ethan Williams. Dr. Palevsky joins the OOIFB from the Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences at Boston College Dr. Palevsky’s expertise in marine biogeochemistry and the ocean carbon cycle, and her research that combines field measurements at sea, biogeochemical sensor data from autonomous moorings (including Irminger Sea OOI Global Array data), satellite observations, and and global climate models will greatly complement, and augment, the knowledge of current OOIFB members. Dr. Williams, a geophysicist with the Department of Earth & Planetary Sciences at the University of California Santa Cruz, will bring new insight and expertise in fiber-optic sensing (in seismology, oceanography, and acoustics) to the OOIFB.
Action: OOIFB-2026- 05 (COMPLETE) – Host a Roundtable on Ocean Observing. A spring meeting of the OOIFB and DSC is usually held in May of each calendar year and focuses on review of the OOI Annual Work Plan for that year. Given funding uncertainties for the Facility, an OOI Annual Work Plan was not yet fully developed by early Spring 2026. As the Annual Work Plan was unavailable for review, the OOIFB instead convened a Roundtable on Ocean Observing. The purpose of this roundtable was to discuss how experience gained from developing and operating the NSF OOI and other sustained observing efforts could inform the evolution of ocean observing programs that meet both the science community’s needs and U.S. national priorities. Motivated by recommendations from the 2025 National Academy of Sciences Decadal Survey of Ocean Sciences, the roundtable sought to articulate a vision that aligns with NSF’s strategic mission for ocean observing systems over the coming decade. The roundtable also aimed to develop a framework for a subsequent, larger community meeting.
Action Taken:
- March 17-20, 2026 – Invited participants, including members of the OOIFB and DSC, as well as representatives from U.S. federal agencies and select members of the scientific community, are requested to attend the OOIFB-hosted, 2026 Roundtable on Ocean Observing, at the URI Graduate School of Oceanography, May 12-14, 2026.
- May 12-14, 2026- The Ocean Observatories Initiative Facility Board (OOIFB) convened a 2.5-day, [public] roundtable at the University of Rhode Island’s Graduate School of Oceanography (Narragansett, RI). Over 50 individuals participated (in person and online) over the 2.5 days, including members of the OOIFB and its Data Systems Committee (DSC), representatives from U.S. federal agencies, and select members of the scientific community (a participant list can be found on the OOIFB website). Dedicated time was spent understanding the current U.S. ocean observing landscape, with framing presentations on the first day that provided high-level overviews of different ocean observing systems. Second day discussions with the full group and in smaller breakout sessions, focused on system capabilities, tradeoffs, potential gaps, and evolving science challenges. The final day was dedicated to outcomes and deliverables, identifying potential partnerships, and reviewing consensus statements that had surfaced during discussions. A full event agenda, participant list, and other associated resources can be found on the OOIFB website.
- May 21, 2026 – Joint virtual web conference for the DSC and the OOIFB to debrief about the Roundtable on Ocean Observing. An Announcement on NSF OOI Descoping is also released.
- June 18, 2026 – The NSF provides a statement pausing OOI descoping and the subsequent issuance of a Dear Colleague Letter.
- July 6, 2026 – A draft executive summary for the 2026 Roundtable on Ocean Observing was distributed to invited participants for review and comment.
- July 23, 2026 – The finalized Executive Summary for the 2026 Roundtable on Ocean Observing was submitted to NSF.
- July 27, 2026 – the Executive Summary for the 2026 Roundtable on Ocean Observing was posted to the OOIFB website and shared through the OOIFB Community Email List.
Action: OOIFB-2026-06 (ONGOING)– Plan an OOIFB Town Hall session during the 2026 American Geophysical Union (AGU) annual conference. The 2026 AGU Meeting will be held in San Francisco, on 7-11, December 2026.
Action Taken:
- April 22, 2026 – The OOIFB submits a Town Hall abstract to the 2026 American Geophysical Union (AGU) conference, to be held in December 2026 in San Francisco, CA. The Town Hall event is titled, “Emerging Technologies in Seafloor Sensing: Future Science Opportunities and the Ocean Observatories Initiative (OOI) Experience”.
- July 30, 2026 – Organizers of the 2026 AGU Conference accept the OOIFB proposal for a Town Hall.