Coastal and Estuarine Science News

Coastal and Estuarine Science News (CESN) is an electronic newsletter that serves as a companion to the journal Estuaries and Coasts.  It was launched by the Estuarine Research Federation (ERF) Board in 2003 to strengthen the link between science and management in coastal systems.  Each issue of CESN provides a brief summary of journal articles, chosen specifically for their strong implication for management of coastal areas.  

      CESN is posted at www.erf.org/cesn-list (where it is also possible to sign up to receive each issue via e-mail).  The number of people on the e-mail distribution list has risen steadily, from approximately 500 in fall 2004 to more than 750 by August 2008.  Website visitation has increased, reaching approximately 7500 this past year (2007).

  CESN is run by an Editorial Board that consists of current and past members of the ERF Board (see below for a complete list).  Editorial Board members review abstracts of upcoming papers in Estuaries and Coasts and select 4 or 5 papers for highlighting in CESN.  Considerations for inclusion include the paper’s relevance for management, geographic balance, and presentation of a broad array of topics.  Editorial Board members provide a list of the important points of individual articles, which is then used by the CESN science writer to write a draft summary.  Draft CESN pieces are provided to the corresponding authors of the articles for comment and approval before distribution.

      ERF conducted a survey of CESN readers in 2004.  Out of 83 respondents, we found:

• We are reaching a wide variety of readers: the respondents’ primary duties are divided between resource management (36%), mainly research (31%), and environmental policy (27%).
• We are reaching an audience outside of ERF, as intended: 64% of the respondents are not members of ERF or the affiliates.
• Respondents think the information provided is useful (74%), or at least interesting (an additional 26%).
• The format and content appears to be appropriate: 80% believed that CESN is about the right length and content, and 66% believe that the articles are useful for coastal management.
• More than half of the respondents (53%) use CESN to keep up with management-related research findings; the second most-cited use was for reports for government or elected officials.  Teaching was also mentioned by several respondents.
• CESN may be increasing readership of Estuaries and Coasts: 50% of the respondents said that they had accessed articles that they would not have otherwise, and an additional 42% said that they had not yet, but may.

  In addition, we routinely get unsolicited positive comments such as “have been meaning to say that I love getting this, have found more story ideas from it over the months than I can count...really helpful, and a great ERF product!”

      We gratefully acknowledge support from the EPA Coastal Management Branch to fund the CESN science writer, Nancy Steinberg.  To expedite the work of the all-volunteer editorial board, CERF recently recruited Chastity Miller to join the CESN staff as its editorial coordinator. 

What’s next for CESN?

• More Spanish translations – the one issue that has been translated so far has been very popular
• Expand the readership – help spread the science by inviting your colleagues to sign up for this free service at the CERF web site.

CESN Editorial Board Membership:  

Merryl Alber, Univ. of Georgia (Editor)

Jim Brennan, Univ. of Washington

Robert Buchsbaum, Mass. Audubon Society

Daniel Conley, Lund University, Sweden

Andrea Copping, Marine Sciences Lab., Seattle

Marie Delorenzo, NOAA National Ocean Service

Brett Dumbauld, Hatfield Marine Science Center

Mike Mallin, UNC Wilmington

Geno Olmi, NOAA Coastal Services Center

Chris Onuf, USGS (retired)

Sandy Wylie-Echeverria, Univ. of Washington

Thanks to Adam Haile for data on CESN users.