Congratulations to recent SMEA graduate Katy Dalton and soon to graduate Megan McKeown who were selected as Sea Grant John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellows for 2021. The 2021 finalists will become the 42nd class of the John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship program. The 74 finalists represent 27 of the 34 Sea Grant programs.
Knauss finalists are chosen through a competitive process that includes several rounds of review at both the state Sea Grant program and national levels. 

A new tool through the University of Washington Sustainable Fisheries initiative compiles information about where to find seafood using a map to easily track down local, sustainable catch for delivery or direct sales. An article about the initiative in Forbes explains “The goal of the map is to support small seafood businesses by making their transition to direct sales just a little bit easier”. 

Check out these recent publications from SMEA faculty, staff and alumni!
A halo of reduced dinoflagellate abundances in and around eelgrass beds was published by SMEA staff member Emily Jacobs-Palmer, alumna Kelly Cribari, Associate Professor Ryan Kelly, and colleagues in collaboration with the Washington Department of Natural Resources. The findings suggest that eelgrass seems to knock down (sometimes toxic) dinoflagellate populations at a distance. 

Angela Cruz, a 2019 SMEA graduate, was granted a 2020-2021 Fulbright U.S. Student research award. Her proposed project is to perform a gender analysis of the blue swimmer crab fishery in Betahwalang and Lampung, Indonesia amidst major fishery reform and development of aquaculture facilities. Gender equity has become a priority for many nations and this project will help to address data gaps regarding men and women’s participation in local fisheries industry. 

John Winton 1930-2020, SMA Graduate in 1991, passed away on January 30, 2020. A veteran of the US Marine Corps, he served the country during the Korean War. Prior to joining our school, John had a lengthy career in executive consulting firms, opening his own here in Seattle in 1972. He was a generous and consistent supporter of SMEA, leaving his mark on our program and setting a high bar for all to follow. 

The National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA) today announced that 51 leaders in the field of public administration, including SMEA alum Michael Jacobson, have been selected for the 2019 Class of Academy Fellows. Induction of the new Fellows will occur during the annual Academy Fall Meeting, which will take place November 7-8 in Arlington, Virginia. Selection of the Academy’s new Fellows follows a rigorous review of the individual’s contributions to the field of public administration and policy. 

Congratulations to recent SMEA graduates Katie Chicojay, Kelly Martin and Spencer Showalter who were selected as Washington Sea Grant John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellows for 2020. The 2020 finalists will become the 41st class of the John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellowship program. The 69 finalists represent 27 of the 34 Sea Grant programs.
Knauss finalists are chosen through a competitive process that includes several rounds of review at both the state Sea Grant program and national levels. 

Congratulations to recent SMEA graduates Tressa Arbow, Rachel Assink, Ashley Bagley, Angela Cruz and Alex Sweetser on being selected for the Washington Sea Grant State Fellowship 2019-2020. The Washington Sea Grant State Fellowship (formerly the Marc Hershman Marine Policy Fellowship) offers a unique educational opportunity for soon-to-graduate or recently finished graduate students engaged in studies pertaining to ocean and coastal policy issues. 

Recent SMEA graduate Zoe van Duivenbode was featured in the College of the Environment’s June newsletter, highlighting her work as a marine educator at Kalaloch Beach in Olympic National Park, where she developed ways she could connect the lessons of the sea to tourists on their summer vacation. Zoe was awarded the Future Park Leaders for Emerging Change Internship, a program for graduate students to work on climate issues related to emerging needs in national parks.  

Congratulations to SMEA alumna Kaitlin Lebon, whose MMA thesis “Evaluating alternatives to reduce whale entanglements in commercial Dungeness Crab fishing gear” was published in Global Ecology and Conservation. Since 2014, the U.S. West Coast has experienced a sudden increase in reported whale entanglements with commercial fishing gear. The increase has been particularly drastic in reported entanglements between Humpback whales and commercial Dungeness crab gear.