Seattle’s Bryant Elementary Science Fair features teams of 5th graders who have worked with mentors to formulate a hypothesis, develop appropriate experiments, analyze results, and draw/communicate conclusions. Current SMEA students Asiya Hussein and Jenna Rolf provided leadership, enthusiasm and expertise as they developed a scientific investigation for the teams of 5th graders that they each mentored.
 
 
The Bryant Elementary Science Fair is one way that current SMEA students give back to the local community, and is important for introducing STEM to elementary students in an exciting, engaging, and interactive way. 

The Washington Coast Resilience Action Demonstration Project (RAD) was a two-year (2019-2021) partnership between the Washington State Department of Ecology and Washington Sea Grant that provided multi-organizational hazards assistance to communities on the Pacific Coast of Washington and laid the groundwork for future coastal resilience efforts. Bobbak Talebi ’15, Tressa Arbow ’19, and Henry Bell ’20 from the Washington State Department of Ecology, and Jackson Blalock with Washington Sea Grant spearheaded the development of this joint project. 

School of Marine and Environmental Affairs alumna Jean Flemma ’93 recently co-authored an op-ed piece for the Seattle Times last week examining the effectiveness of a US ban on Russian seafood. As one of the most frequently globally traded food commodities, seafood is difficult to trace, and a ban on the sale of Russian seafood may prove ineffective.  Read the full piece here: https://www.seattletimes.com/opinion/russian-seafood-ban-is-meaningless-without-real-traceability/ 

Why did you decide to pursue a Master of Marine Affairs?
I have wanted to study marine science since I was a young child. My dad took me fishing with him quite often when I was young so I was exposed to the ocean and marine life quite early. I was also exposed to fishing regulations at that age because I was tasked with translating fishing regulations for my dad since he couldn’t read or speak English. 

Ryan Kelly, Associate Professor in the School of Marine and Environmental Affairs, is among the 28 teams that received the Department of Defense Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) award for the FY 22 competition for his project entitled “Environmental DNA-based Monitoring of the Marine Environment.”
According to the press release: “By supporting teams whose members have diverse sets of expertise, the MURI program acknowledges that the complexities of modern science and engineering challenges often intersect more than one discipline and require creative and diverse approaches to tackle these problems.  

On the shores of the Chukchi Sea in far northwest Alaska, climate change is already impacting the traditional way of life of the Iñupiaq people. The inhabitants of this region have lived off the land for thousands of years, hunting caribou and bearded seals, fishing for salmon and sheefish, and foraging wild berries and plants. But as the planet warms and Arctic sea ice thins, accessing and harvesting these traditional foods has become more difficult. 

Thesis work on marine conservation tourism and public engagement programs with the Giant Pacific Octopus has evolved into an accepted article for the journal Regional Studies in Marine Science. SMEA alum Manjari Misra ’20 and her advisor Professor Marc Miller developed the draft following the completion of Misra’s thesis work. Misra reports, “this paper was regarding the marine conservation tourism programs at the Seattle Aquarium. 

The School of Marine & Environmental Affairs will hold its next faculty meeting on Thursday, March 3, 12:00pm. Please see below for details on how to join;
Zoom Online Meeting
https://washington.zoom.us/j/94705406674
Phone In
1-206-337-9723
Meeting ID: 947 0540 6674
A copy of the meeting agenda can be found here. Please contact Jackie Chapman (jachap@uw.edu) with any questions or for more information. 

SMEA alumna Abigail Keller ’21 recently published her thesis work in the journal of Ecological Applications. Her work as a SMEA student focused on utilizing eDNA data to detect the presence of the invasive European green crab in Puget Sound waters. Washington Sea Grant’s Crab Team was integral in providing comparative data from trapping efforts, and Keller’s faculty advisor SMEA Professor Ryan Kelly is listed as a co-author on the piece. 

Three School of Marine & Environmental Affairs Capstone Project teams will present a synthesis of their work and the findings to their client(s) on Friday, February 25th, 2022. Capstone presentations are the culminating experience of a team project that begins early in the first-year of the MMA. Students are selected to projects based on their preferences and interests, and work closely with a client and faculty advisor to tackle a real-world, practical problem or issue to produce a final report for the client.