





Join us on Tuesday, March 18th (rescheduled from February 11th due to weather) for a discussion featuring experts from the fishing and aquaculture industry, the invasive species science and policy realm, and the culinary world. Panelists will delve into the history of invasives and the reality of the blue catfish surge from fishhook to table; give an insider’s look into recent discourse on the issue; and delve into the policy bottlenecks and other barriers keeping blue catfish from becoming a restaurant staple.
Register for the Panel and Reception!
Join Us In-Person
March 18, 2025
for a panel discussion with Chesapeake community leaders addressing the invasive blue catfish.
6PM Panel
7PM Reception
Hosted by the Chesapeake Bay Trust
108 Severn Avenue, Annapolis, MD
ABOUT THE PANELISTS:
Jana Davis, Ph.D., President, Chesapeake Bay Trust
Dr. Jana Davis is the President of the Chesapeake Bay Trust, overseeing our work on watershed restoration, education, outreach, and innovation. Jana has been at the Trust since 2005, first as Assistant Director for Programs and then as Associate Executive Director before assuming the role of President. Jana is trained as a marine ecologist, with a B.S. in biology from Yale University and a Ph.D. in oceanography from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Jana shifted from academia to resource management via the American Association for the Advancement of Science Congressional Science Fellowship program, during which she served in a United States Senate personal office and was sponsored by the American Geophysical Union.
Minister Brian Bordley, CEO/Chair, ONE More… ONE Less Mentoring
Minister Brian Bordley is a dynamic business consultant, former executive chef, and international fisherman from Baltimore, MD. He serves as the CEO of One More… One Less Mentoring, a nonprofit organization with a national reach (www.omolmentoringinc.org). Bordley is also the creator of OPWWEE: BmoreWet!, a groundbreaking mental health and wellness program designed to serve underserved communities and veterans. This initiative focuses on addressing emotional disorders, PTSD, trauma, anxiety, and depression by connecting participants with aquatic ecosystems. Through his work, Bordley is pioneering the integration of mental health wellness with environmental conservation, with a strong commitment to equity, diversity, and inclusion, particularly for Black and Brown communities.
Allison Colden, Ph.D., Maryland Executive Director, Chesapeake Bay Foundation
Allison Colden, an Annapolis resident, received a doctorate in marine sciences from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science in 2015. Before coming to CBF, she worked in the U.S House of Representatives as a Knauss Marine Policy Fellow and later as the senior manager of external affairs at Restore America’s Estuaries. She spent six years as CBF’s Maryland Senior Fisheries Scientist before being named Maryland Executive Director.
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. For the past two years, Colden has overseen CBF’s Maryland oyster restoration program, which adds tens of millions of oysters to the Bay each year to sanctuary reefs. She also serves as Maryland’s legislative representative to the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission and as an appointed member of Maryland’s Oyster Advisory Commission, where she advances sustainability through regulation and cooperative fisheries management. Her work on fishery issues has given her a broad understanding of the water quality problems that affect the Bay as well as the need for clean water.
Zack Mills, Chef & Partner, True Chesapeake Oyster Co.
A native of Davidsonville, Maryland, Zack Mills graduated from The French Culinary Institute in 2007. Immediately following graduation, Mills began working in various kitchens in the Washington, D.C. area before landing a job as a sous chef at Bourbon Steak, a Michael Mina restaurant located in Four Seasons Hotel Washington, D.C.
During his tenure there, Bourbon Steak received 3 stars in the Washington Post and Washingtonian dining guides and was named Fine Dining Restaurant of the Year by the Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington. In 2012, Mills accepted the opportunity of a lifetime to join Mina Group as a corporate sous chef working under the direction of Michael Mina.
There, he oversaw the culinary operations for the James Beard award-winning chef’s East Coast restaurants along with several notable restaurant openings including PABU in Baltimore, Maryland; The Handle Bar in Jackson Hole, Wyoming; and Pub 1842 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Continuing under Mina’s mentorship, Mills accepted the executive chef position at Wit & Wisdom, Mina’s upscale American tavern located in Four Seasons Hotel Baltimore. Under Mills’ leadership, Wit & Wisdom was named one of Baltimore’s Best Restaurants by both the Baltimore Sun and Baltimore Magazine.
Since opening, True Chesapeake Oyster Co has received four-and-a-half out of five stars in the Baltimore Sun and was voted Best New Restaurant by the Baltimore Magazine Reader’s Poll. Giving back to the community has always been a top priority for Mills.
He continues to volunteer his time cooking for national charitable organizations including No Kid Hungry and the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation. He was the 2016 winner of Baltimore’s “The Supper” chef competition to benefit the Saint Agnes Foundation and has also appeared on the Food Network’s competition series Chopped, as well as Food Network’s first ever plant-based cooking competition, It’s CompliPlated.
Matthew Scales, Seafood Marketing Director, Maryland Department of Agriculture
A graduate of Towson University, Matthew Scales has a Master of Science in Communication Management. His prior experience includes serving as the public relations specialist with the Maryland Office of Tourism, then the Executive Director for Visit Harford. Matthew has served on several boards, which currently serves on Maryland’s Aquaculture Coordinating Council. Matthew now serves as the Seafood Marketing Director for the Maryland Department of Agriculture, as he works with government agencies, producers, and buyers to market and promote Maryland seafood consumption. Matthew’s leadership includes serving in the U.S. Coast Guard, and the Harford Leadership Academy. Matthew lives in Harford County, Maryland with his wife and two children, with a third one on the way.