Outreach and Blog contributions

Exploring Coastal Ecosystems

I joined Meaghan Cuddy and the Smithsonian Teen Earth Optimism team to discuss ocean acidification in the coastal ocean. This (recorded) webinar and resources are for middle and high school students (Grade 6-8, 9-12). We had a lot of fun and even made up some pH jokes!

Tracking the health of Coral Reefs: Live from Belize

I took part in a live broadcast from Carrie Bow Cay in Belize to share the work our team of researchers from the Smithsonian were doing during an expedition to the MesoAmerican Barrier Reef. We interacted with >800 students around the US to discuss how and why were are studying coral reefs there. 

The Seattle Times covered our submersible-based research on red urchins and drift kelp in the San Juan Islands. We found red urchins 2X deeper than they had ever been seen before (284 meters), and documented drift algal capture well below the limits of our scuba-based research in the area. These observations show that kelp produced in the narrow nearshore band around the San Juan Islands influences the entire ecosystem in this area.

GeekWire covered our study of deep red urchins and drift kelp in the San Juan Islands. The SeaDoc Society and Oceangate coordinated to provide submersibile time to allow unprecedented access to the deepest parts of the San Juan Islands to compare urchin ecology at 600'+ to what we know from shallower depths that are accessible by Scuba. Photo: Oceangate.

I am president of a University of Washington grad student organization that is making connections among grad student researchers and Puget Sound locals to raise awareness of important environmental issues in our region. Check us out on Facebook, Instragram and Twitter @SoundScholars

FHL tidebites about the role of the Friday Harbor Labs collaborative culture in the development of the L&O paper describing the relationship among freshwater input, particulate organic matter (POM) dynamics and seawater pH in the San Juan Islands.

My contribution to the Burke Museum's 1000 word challenge was featured in this Science Positive blog post by Brandon Peecook.

Food flow across ecosystems

Our paper investigating POM composition and biomarker evaluation of sources of POM was featured in a blog post on the Oikos blog.

A blog post about a class I help develop and teach that integrated intertidal and subtidal research methods (including Scientific Diving certification) to create an omnitidal experience for students at FHL.

A Science Positive blog post about my involvement in the Graduate Climate Conference.

FHL tidebites about the publication that summarized the research of many Zoobot students on the ecology of detrital kelp.