The School of Marine and Environmental Affairs is excited to welcome the incoming SMEA Class of 2028 to the University of Washington!
This new cohort brings together students with a wide range of interests, experiences, and perspectives, united by a shared interest in addressing the complex challenges facing our oceans and environment.
As they begin their time at SMEA, students will have opportunities to learn across disciplines, engage with the marine and environmental policy community, and build connections with peers, faculty, alumni, and practitioners. 

SMEA alumna Ellie Mason is featured in The Maine Monitor for her work restoring endangered Atlantic salmon habitat on Maine’s Narraguagus River.
As a habitat restoration project manager with the Downeast Salmon Federation, Mason is helping guide the replacement of the Cherryfield ice-control dam with a fish passage designed to improve migration for salmon and other fish.
Read the full story from The Maine Monitor 

SMEA students Walker Hobson and Jane Holiday are featured in a recent New York Times article exploring the challenges posed by invasive green crabs and their impacts on coastal ecosystems.
Their research, conducted in partnership with Washington Sea Grant, contributes to a growing understanding of invasive species and the complex environmental challenges facing coastal communities. Through this work, they are helping advance important conversations about marine ecosystems, conservation, and the future of our oceans. 

On July 28, SMEA students Eve Byers, Paul Messier, and Katie Raab joined recent SMEA graduate Sawyer Jenkins for a field sampling trip to an Olympia oyster bed in Padilla Bay near Edison, Washington.
The trip was part of the sample collection process for Eve’s thesis project, which examines larval crab composition in Olympia oyster beds. The research requires getting out into the field to collect samples to better understand the organisms living within these important coastal habitats. 

The University of Washington School of Marine & Environmental Affairs (SMEA) is proud to congratulate Research Professor and Director Phil Levin on his election to the Washington State Academy of Sciences (WSAS).
Election to the Academy recognizes scientists and engineers whose work has made significant contributions to their fields and who are committed to using their expertise to help address Washington state’s most pressing challenges. 

The University of Washington School of Marine & Environmental Affairs (SMEA) is pleased to welcome Dr. Phil Levin as the School’s new Director.
An internationally recognized conservation scientist, Dr. Levin has dedicated his career to advancing interdisciplinary approaches that connect science, policy, and communities to address complex environmental challenges. His work bridges the natural and social sciences, helping develop innovative tools that support the conservation of marine, freshwater, and terrestrial ecosystems while recognizing the needs of the people who depend on them. 

SMEA Director Dr. Nives Dolšak is a co-author of a new study exploring how U.S. environmental nonprofits have integrated social justice into their missions and activities between 2011 and 2023.
The research examines how organizations have responded to changing societal expectations and finds that many incorporate social justice in ways that align with their environmental missions and expertise.
Read the full publication here 

The School of Marine & Environmental Affairs is proud to congratulate master’s student Tessa Marks on receiving a Fulbright Research Grant to Honduras.
Marks, a student in Marine & Environmental Affairs and International Studies, will conduct research on mangrove forests in the Bay Islands of Honduras, part of the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System. Working with the Bay Islands Conservation Association on the island of Roatán, she will explore how ecological conditions, governance structures, and community priorities influence mangrove protection and restoration efforts. 

The Coastal Fisheries & Communities Lab at SMEA published a new paper in the journal Aquaculture, which is available to read and download at this link: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0044848626006447?via%3Dihub. The paper documents the Gulf of Alaska mariculture industry at a pivotal moment in its development, as told through the perspectives of people whose knowledge, advocacy, and deep commitment have built new opportunities for their communities from the ground up. 

Dear SMEA friends! 
Greetings from SMEA. We had an exciting spring with presentations of outstanding capstone projects and thesis research, from the sea to the land, from Dungeness crab, fisheries management, ship strike hazards, to subsistence food production, offshore wind, to education, critical mineral mining, labor rights, and climate change policy implementation. You can watch recordings of these presentations here. We celebrated our graduates’ accomplishments, including outstanding thesis research and the impact our students make on our communities.