The Alliance for the Chesapeake Bay’s 21st Annual Chesapeake Watershed Forum, which will be held at the National Conservation Training Center in Shepherdstown, WV, is a watershed-wide event reaching over 400 restoration and protection practitioners to inspire and empower local action towards clean water. We share successful tools and techniques, offer lessons and learnings from on-the-ground work, build capacities of local organizations, foster partnerships, educate on new initiatives and emerging practices, network with others, and celebrate our successes. We look forward to seeing you in November!

Our 2026 theme is “Practical Solutions for People and Planet.” As we enter a new era for the Chesapeake, the focus has shifted from what we must do to how we will get it done. The 2026 Chesapeake Watershed Forum theme centers on the tangible: the tools, techniques, and collaborative models where research meets results.

This year, we invite technical and topical experts across disciplines to share their research or hard-earned knowledge with the Forum community. Every session is designed to apply practical solutions to ongoing challenges—whether through deepening scientific understanding, mastering a new restoration methodology, or scaling a real-world solution. By bridging the gap between innovative research and on-the-ground action, we are building the foundation for watershed success. Join us to find the practical building blocks for people and the planet.