Written by Teressa Pucylowski
Oysters are a big deal in coastal Washington; they provide a source of food, economic profit, livelihood, and cultural tradition. Taylor Shellfish is the largest growing company in Washington State, making up the majority of oysters distributed and consumed. As a soon-to-be second year graduate student with the School of Marine and Environmental Affairs, I have spent the last several months looking at the sustainability of oyster production. 

Congratulations to Professor Eddie Allison and his co-authors who scored the cover of Nature with their article ‘Bright spots among the world’s coral reefs‘. The article was originally published in June and the study is one of the largest global studies of its kind. Nearly 40 scientists from 34 different universities and conservation groups conducted the research. Professor Allison reviewed more than 6,000 reef surveys in 46 countries across the globe, and discovered 15 bright spots — places where, against all odds, there were a lot more fish on coral reefs than expected. 

Why did you decide to pursue a Master of Marine Affairs?
I am an active duty Coast Guard Officer. Each year, the Coast Guard sends several dozen people to postgrad programs across a wide range of degree programs. I was always interested in Public Administration, but when I discovered Marine Affairs, I found myself much more interested in applying many of the same skills learned in the Public Administration field, to the marine environment. 

Alumni from the Institute for Marine Studies (IMS) and School of Marine Affairs (SMA), which are now the School of Marine and Environmental Affairs, recently came together on behalf of The Puget Sound Nearshore Ecosystem Restoration Project (PSNERP). PSNERP endeavors to restore shorelines throughout Puget Sound. The group traveled to Washington D.C. for a Army Corps Civil Works Review Board (CWRB), a required step before a budget to fund the program can be submitted to Congress.  

Why did you decide to pursue a Master of Marine Affairs?
All throughout high school and college I was very focused on the hard sciences. I majored in microbiology and for a while I wanted to become a professor and work in research. During an internship with Oregon Sea Grant, I had the chance to listen to Dr. Jane Lubchenco, the former director of NOAA, speak about her time in Washington D.C. 

Professor Eddie Allison was a co-author on two articles published today in Nature. The article ‘Bright spots among the world’s coral reefs‘ is one of the largest global studies of its kind. Nearly 40 scientists from 34 different universities and conservation groups conducted the research. Professor Allison reviewed more than 6,000 reef surveys in 46 countries across the globe, and discovered 15 bright spots — places where, against all odds, there were a lot more fish on coral reefs than expected. 

Assistant Professor Ryan Kelly and Professor Nives Dolšak were both recently featured in articles discussing water and the valuable, as well as harmful things it can contain.
An article published in The Mercury News took a look at eDNA as a new tool for marine biologists. As the article explains, Professor Kelly and other scientists took stock of the marine mammals and fish in Monterey Bay in a study designed to show how eDNA stacks up against traditional dive surveys. 

How did you decide to become a professor?
Sometimes you have to take a leap to get what you really want. I was on a narrow path, teaching math in a two-year college while working on my Ph.D., when a terrific opportunity presented itself—a post-doctoral fellowship in marine policy at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution. Although I very much enjoyed the teaching I was doing, I came to realize that teaching alone was not enough, I also wanted to remain an active researcher. 

SMEA graduate students Megan Desillier, Seth Sivinski, and Nicole White recently completed a year long capstone project in which they worked with the International Tanker Owners Pollution Federation (ITOPF) and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Office of Response and Restoration to understand how the world’s shipping dynamic has changed in recent years and how these emerging challenges in marine transportation will affect that dynamic. 

Congratulations to Professor Nives Dolšak and SMEA Alum Sophia Amberson on their latest publications!
Dolšak’s paper titled “Factors impacting investments in energy efficiency and clean technologies: Empirical evidence from Slovenian manufacturing firms” examines factors impacting firms’ decisions to invest in energy efficiency and clean technologies. Based on the paper’s findings, it can be concluded that the energy efficiency gap is less likely to exist in large and well-performing firms, implying that policy measures should primarily target less energy intensive, small and medium-sized enterprises.