Welcome to the 54th Annual Benthic Ecology Meeting
When: March 1 – 4, 2026
Where: Virginia Beach, Virginia (USA)
Venue: Cavalier Resort
Hosts: Virginia Institute of Marine Science
Sponsors: Virginia Institute of Marine Science, The Nature Conservancy
Contact: BEM2026@vims.edu
Schedule
Sunday, March 1, 2026
- Optional fieldtrips and workshops
- Welcome reception in the evening, 6pm–8pm
Monday, March 2, 2026
- Concurrent sessions with oral presentations
Tuesday, March 3, 2026
- Concurrent sessions with oral presentations
- Poster session, 6pm–8pm
Wednesday, March 4, 2026
- Concurrent sessions with oral presentations
Program
The Organizing Committee is pleased to share the following materials from the 2026 meeting!
Program PDF
The program is available as a printable PDF, including speaker bios, list of social events, floor plan, and more.
- Download the Program PDF
- Open the Oxford Abstracts program
- View the QR code to the Oxford Abstracts program
- Help: How to use Oxford Abstracts
Online Poster Gallery
Oxford Abstracts allows poster presenters to share an electronic version of their poster in the online poster gallery, which includes a chat function for connecting with other attendees. Open the Oxford Abstracts program for more.
Venue
The official hotel and venue for BEM 2026 is the Marriott Virginia Beach Oceanfront Resort.
Kristy Kroeker
Kristy Kroeker is a Professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology and the Coastal Science and Policy Graduate Program at the University of California Santa Cruz. Her research examines the ecological effects of global change on marine ecosystems, from seagrass meadows to kelp forests. Her research program is grounded in the integration of ecology and applied perspectives and is strengthened by interdisciplinary collaborations.
Efforts to improve DEI are integrated across her research program, teaching, and service; she has been deeply engaged in using field-based experiences and inclusive mentorship to improve retention of underrepresented students in marine sciences. Kroeker is a Packard Fellow in Science and Engineering, a Sloan Fellow in Ocean Sciences, and a UC Climate Action Champion. She sits on the Scientific Advisory Team of the California Ocean Protection Council.
Emmett Duffy
Emmett Duffy is Founding Director and Chief Scientist of the Smithsonian Institution’s Marine Global Earth Observatory (MarineGEO), a global network of partners working together to understand ecosystems on the edge — coastal ecosystems under pressure. He was a professor of marine science at VIMS for 18 years and has been a leader for two decades in the science of marine biodiversity and ecology.
He is an Aldo Leopold Leadership Fellow, a Fellow of the Ecological Society of America, and recipient of Japan’s inaugural Kobe Prize in Marine Biology in 2011, and author of Ocean Ecology: Marine life in the age of humans (2021, Princeton University Press). Duffy first began attending the Benthic Ecology Meetings in 1986, in Boston, and has attended many more since then!
Allison Colden
Allison Colden is the Maryland Executive Director for the Chesapeake Bay Foundation (CBF). She provides strategic vision and leadership for policy initiatives at the local and state level to achieve ambitious Bay restoration goals. She is among the leading advocates for sustainable fisheries policies to protect important Chesapeake Bay species such as rockfish, oysters, and blue crabs.
Allison has led advocacy efforts to pass state bills such as 2019 legislation that permanently protected Maryland’s five large-scale oyster restoration sanctuaries. She serves as Maryland’s representative to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and as an appointed member of Maryland’s Oyster Advisory Commission. Allison holds a B.S. in Biology from the University of Virginia and a Ph.D. in Fisheries Science from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science.