SMEA is proud to share a new paper published in Fisheries Research titled Assessing the social-ecological dimensions of Dungeness crab fishery closures in Southeast Alaska from analysis of public records.
The study was led by SMEA alum Rondi Nordal (Class of 2024), with faculty coauthors Anne Beaudreau and Erendira Aceves-Bueno, in collaboration with NOAA colleagues.
Drawing on more than a decade of public meeting records, the research takes a deep look at how decisions about fishery closures are shaped not only by ecological goals, but also by social, cultural, and subsistence needs. 

A new study co-authored by SMEA Director Dr. Nives Dolšak has been published in PLOS ONE, examining how the nationality of waste-to-energy (WtE) facility operators influences public support for these projects.
The research focuses on Thailand, where WtE projects are gaining attention as a potential solution to both energy and waste management challenges. Through a large-scale survey experiment, the study explores how public perceptions, environmental values, and international partnerships intersect when it comes to sustainable infrastructure. 

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 invertebrates, bull kelp, Dungeness crab, fisheries management, aquaculture, container ships, ocean grabbing, to food forest, and salmon habitat restoration. You can watch recordings of these presentations here. We celebrated our graduates’ accomplishments. Including outstanding research and the impact our students make on our communities. 

Professor Ryan Kelly was interviewed for his work with environmental DNA in two publications, NPR and Science.
Scientists want to track the world’s biodiversity using DNA in the air by Ari Daniel.
DNA captured from the air could track wildlife, invasive species–and humans by Warren Cornwall. 

Please join us on Friday, May 16 and 23, as some of our soon-to-be graduates share their theses and capstone work.
Presentations will be followed by a short Q&A.
Join us in person in MAR 168, or over Zoom:
https://washington.zoom.us/j/96145092750?pwd=FuVYbVxI0fbi37CaFV6aaiaOprdbaS.1
Meeting ID: 961 4509 2750
Passcode: 292533
We look forward to having you join us!
We look forward to having you join us! 

A recent paper published in the journal FACETS features seven SMEA authors, titled Excavating the regulatory process and risks posed by Alaska hardrock mine expansions.
Open-access available here!
This paper represents the culmination of a SMEA capstone project! We hope it will be of interest to a broad audience, including NEPA practitioners, applied scientists, and citizens that current or future mining operations may impact. 

Dr. Nives Dolsak’s latest paper entitled “Postmaterialism and Environmental Protection Revisited: Domestic Plastic Bag Regulations, 1992–2019”, just got published online in Global Environmental Politics!
 
Abstract:
The postmaterialism hypothesis suggests that wealthy countries are likely to be early adopters of pollution control regulations. Yet, Global South countries have taken the lead in regulating plastic bags. To explain this puzzle, Dolsak and co-authors examine the influence of plastic waste imports on the onset of domestic plastic bag regulations. 

The US Global Change Research Program (USGCRP) is leading the first-ever National Nature Assessment (NNA1) to evaluate U.S. lands, waters, wildlife, biodiversity, and their contributions to our economy, health, culture, climate, and equity. The Assessment will also project future changes and their impacts. Marking the Zero-Order Draft (annotated outline) release in the Federal Register, the NNA1 is hosting in-person and virtual public engagement events to gather public comment during fall 2024. We are pleased to invite you to the NNA1 Public Engagement Event in Seattle, Washington on Friday, November 22, 2024.

SMEA is proud to share that Professor Terrie Klinger has been selected for the Western Society of Naturalists’ Lifetime Achievement Award.

SMEA faculty are committed to making our research publicly accessible. Therefore, most of our journal articles are published in open access journals and are hyperlinked in the below list. Faculty names are in bold, names of students and postdoctoral scholars trained by our faculty are underlined. The publications listed below include articles published between November 2023 and October 2024.