California Seaweed Festival-Cabrillo Marine Aquarium

California Seaweed Festival at Sea Fair

Festival Theme: Urban Ocean Ecosystems

Hands-on activities, Vendors, Food & Cooking Demos, Science & Technology, Live Music, Magical Creatures, Touch Tanks & more

Workshops – Tickets Required

10:15am -11:15am: Seaweed in a Solidarity Economy, with Julia Dunn, Earth Equity
Short Workshop for up to 25 participants ($10)
Sponsored by CSU Northridge & NOAA
As the seaweed industry grows, there’s a repeating conversation around “scaling up” which often winds up replicating the same extractive values that caused the climate crisis our industry hopes to mitigate and heal. This interactive workshop explores cooperative economies as an answer to this “problem of scale” and considers how seaweed farmers can be leaders in a just transition.

11:30am -12:30pm: Identifying Common Seaweeds: Southern California Seaweed Taxonomy and Morphology, with Adi Khen and Jen Smith, Smith Lab at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UC San Diego
Short workshop for up to 40 participants, includes a Southern California Seaweed ID card ($40)
Sponsored by The Azulito Fund
Learn more about Southern California seaweeds– how to identify them, where they grow, and why they’re important. Participants will receive a field guide featuring pictures and information on 24 common species.

12:45 -1:45pm: Glow with Kelp: DIY Sunscreen from Ocean Science, with Jason Williams, UCLA
Short workshop for up to 30 participants, includes samples to take home ($50)
Explore the science of natural extracts and how they interact with zinc to form nanoparticles with unique sun-blocking properties. Following a live demo of nanoparticle formation from kelp extract, participants will work together in small groups to blend their own natural sunscreen cream using ocean-derived ingredients. Along the way, discuss kelp’s ecological importance and how green chemistry can replace harmful industrial processes.

2:00 – 3:00pm: Artistic Seaweed Pressings, with Karina Arzuyan, Nuzhdin Laboratory, USC, and Hayden Schneider, Kelp Ark.
Short workshop for up to 40 (change to 30) participants, take your own seaweed pressing home! ($40)
Learn to make seaweed pressings that highlight unusual natural aspects of algae, both large and small. After reviewing a variety of examples and a short demonstration, each participant will have an opportunity to select seaweeds and complete their own artistic, alternatively angled pressing.

12:45 -1:45pm: Glow with Kelp: DIY Sunscreen from Ocean Science, with Jason Williams, UCLA
Short workshop for up to 30 participants, includes samples to take home ($50)
Explore the science of natural extracts and how they interact with zinc to form nanoparticles with unique sun-blocking properties. Following a live demo of nanoparticle formation from kelp extract, participants will work together in small groups to blend their own natural sunscreen cream using ocean-derived ingredients. Along the way, discuss kelp’s ecological importance and how green chemistry can replace harmful industrial processes.

2:00 – 3:00pm: Artistic Seaweed Pressings, with Karina Arzuyan, Nuzhdin Laboratory, USC, and Hayden Schneider, Kelp Ark.
Short workshop for up to 40 (change to 30) participants, take your own seaweed pressing home! ($40)
Learn to make seaweed pressings that highlight unusual natural aspects of algae, both large and small. After reviewing a variety of examples and a short demonstration, each participant will have an opportunity to select seaweeds and complete their own artistic, alternatively angled pressing.

Aduitorium Presentations

Courtyard Panels

• Indigenous People’s Forum – Hear Gabrielino/Tongva women share the challenges and ongoing work as traditional caretakers of the ocean.

• Seaweed Applications in Farming and Health – Learn about the vast array of seaweed uses from biostimulants to cellular health

• Urban Ocean Ecosystems – Get insight into the cultural and ecological impact of where ocean and urban environments intersect

• Restoration & Seaweed Solutions – Engage in a panel on current kelp restoration and blue carbon initiatives

• Cooking Demos – Taste and learn about using seaweed in everyday food preparations

Seaweed Activities – Front Lawn

Free Activities!

• Seaweed Pressing

• Seaweed Printing

• Seaweed Collage Table

• Epoxy Resin Pendant making – limited

• Ocean Jenga

• Meet the Mermaid’s of the Kelp Forest

The Surreal Sirena and Mermaid Kairi at the Seaweed Festival

Come one come all to see real live mermaids at the California Seaweed Festival! Mermaid Sura and Mermaid Kairi have swam from the kelp forests to join us in celebration of their favorite oceanic fauna. Come say hello, listen to stories of their underwater tales, and take a photo to commemorate your day!