ALUMNI

View our Alumni Portfolio below by clicking on each image, then learn more about each graduating class by scrolling down the page.
The Graduate Program in Coastal Science and Policy prepares future leaders to solve current and emerging challenges to coastal sustainability.

The program offers two programs of study, a masters of science and a Ph.D. designated emphasis for UCSC Ph.D. students. Coursework emphasizes interdisciplinary scholarship, project-based study, and developing practical solutions to real-world problems.

Below get to know our fantastic and innovative alums.

Class of 2023

Faculty Advisors:
Mark Carr
Elena Finkbeiner

Partner Organization:
Comunidad y Biodiversidad (COBI)

Niza Contreras

Hometown: San Francisco, California

Niza is passionate about studying community-based fisheries management, particularly in Latin America, with a focus on using traditional conservation practices to develop adaptive solutions to the effects of climate change on marine ecosystems. She is bilingual in Spanish and English with dual US-Mexican citizenship. Niza hopes to bring both a transdisciplinary and a transnational perspective to these complex socio-ecological systems, with the recognition that climate change is breaking barriers and forcing us to reimagine our conventional divisions and definitions. Niza graduated from Stanford University as an Earth Systems major in 2020 with a focus on Oceans, Climate, and Atmosphere.

Watch Niza's final capstone presentation here - The power of community-based solutions: Increasing climate resilience in Mexican small-scale fisheries through knowledge sharing

Read about Niza's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

For my capstone project for the Coastal Science and Policy M.S. program, I plan to strengthen knowledge around climate adaptation strategy implementation in artisanal fisheries in México by documenting and sharing current strategies used by fishing cooperatives in Baja California Sur. Additionally, I aim to understand what social and ecological characteristics of the fishing cooperatives enable or constrain them from successfully implementing adaptation strategies. I plan to develop a knowledge-sharing platform that can be used by fisheries managers and decision-makers to see what strategies for climate problems have worked for other communities, why these strategies were successful in this community, and how they might be able to improve the adaptive capacity of their own community to successfully implement the same strategies.

I will work with the Mexican organization Comunidad y Biodiversidad COBI and ten cooperatives that are part of the federation FEDECOOP to conduct focus groups with fisheries managers, fishers, and community members. These focus groups will investigate the past, present, and future adaptation strategies that the cooperatives have developed in response to the different impacts of climate change they experience within their fisheries. I will work with COBI to share information on the strategies that I collect in a way that it can be easily accessed and understood by members of fishing cooperatives. The first step will be to include the data on COBI’s PescaData app, which serves as an information-sharing and social media platform for fishers and the fishing community in México. The second step will be to identify (or create) another platform where I can share more detailed information about different adaptation strategies in an informative and usable way.

Faculty Advisors:
Anne Kapuscinski
Jeremy West

Partner Organization:
Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA)

Craig Dudenhoeffer

Hometown: Santa Cruz, California

Current position: Chief Impact & Investments Officer SOA, Co-Founder Ocean Solutions Accelerator

Craig is extremely passionate about supporting entrepreneurs that use scalable technologies to positively impact ocean health. He is influenced by an early career realization that as one scientist he might only make an incremental impact, but if he helped entrepreneurs develop and apply scalable new technologies, he could bring about exponential positive change.

Currently, he is the Chief Impact and Investments Officer at Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA) and the Co-founder of the Ocean Solutions Accelerator (the first accelerator program created to support ocean tech entrepreneurs and their startup companies). Craig also co-founded a Venture Capital fund in 2019 called SOA Seabird Ventures that invests in “Seed” to “Series A” ocean impact startups.

Craig brings experience to the CSP program from working in both tech and for the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). Including supporting the launch of the world’s first Internet of Things (IoT) accelerator program in San Francisco for ReadWrite where he worked closely with 115 early-stage frontier technology startups from a variety of industries and functioned as a key liaison between these startups and ReadWrite’s investor network. He also received his Bachelors from UCSC in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.

Watch Craig's final capstone presentation here - Ocean impact tracking for ecopreneurs

Read about Craig's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

For his capstone project, Craig is working with Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA) to build an online tool that ocean impact startups can use to clearly track, measure, and report their impact to funders and other interested parties. The impact tracking tool focuses on key impact areas such as Blue Foods, Blue Carbon, Ocean Pollution, Habitat Restoration & Preservation. Craig is collaborating with ocean impact entrepreneurs, funders, and leading ocean scientists to design a tool that will improve communication and alignment for those seeking to build and support ocean impact solutions. With Sustainable Development Goal 14 (Life Below Water) severely underfunded, Craig hopes his tool will create more transparency for ocean impact projects while also ensuring that the most impactful projects receive funding. The tool has the potential to increase funding for SDG14 solutions and will ultimately help to improve ocean impact outcomes.

Faculty Co-Advisors:
Elena Finkbeiner
Katherine Seto

Partner Organization:

Victoria González Carman (CONICET)
Aquamarina

Daniela Font

Hometown: Buenos Aires, Argentina

From a young age, Daniela has been interested in biodiversity conservation. Daniela graduated from the University of Buenos Aires (Argentina) with a Bachelor’s in Biological Sciences and an emphasis on Aquatic Biology. For six years, she studied the genetic status of the largest cat in the Americas, the jaguar, for conservation purposes as an assistant researcher at the Argentinean Museum of Natural History. Her close collaboration with local government authorities and NGOs, allowed her to connect scientific research with policy and local action.Daniela is excited to apply her knowledge of working to save the endangered jaguar to addressing marine turtle bycatch in small-scale, artisanal fisheries in collaboration with coastal Argentinian communities for her capstone project. Through the Coastal Science and Policy program, Daniela’s goal is to protect marine turtles by studying their interaction with local fisheries through an integrative approach that includes the study of the socio-economic context. She wants to make a difference in the way endangered populations are managed, fostering their coexistence with sustainable local economies.

Watch Dani's final capstone presentation here - Complexities in sea turtle bycatch: The case of artisanal fisheries in Northern Argentina

Read about Dani's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

For her capstone project, she is working on the conservation of sea turtles from the Southwestern Atlantic Ocean. In particular, she is trying to understand and address the incidental capture of three species of sea turtles in artisanal fishing nets from the Buenos Aires coast. She will analyze data on bycatch rates and their past spatial and temporal variation, and also enrich these data with fishing community participatory research and field interviews. Her goal is to co-develop the guidelines for a management plan with local fishers to reduce sea turtle bycatch in this region that includes their perspectives and perceptions. She will also participate in the 2022 Small-Scale Fisheries Latin American and the Caribbean Congress in Mérida, México.

Faculty Co-Advisors:
Marm Kilpatrick
Don Croll

Partner Organization:
Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute
Office of the Prime Minister of Belize (Beverly Wade)
Wildlife Conservation Society

Jamal Galves

Hometown: Belize

Current position: Manatee Conservation & Program Director at Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute, Belize

“I felt that it was more fitting for me to get into a program that would allow me to pick up from where I am, a program that translates into action…you can leave with a world of knowledge, experience, partnerships, and networks that allows you to move into many organizations. It encompassed what I needed for my future.” - Jamal Galves

Jamal has been committed to manatee conservation in Belize from an early age. He was first inspired to pursue this path whilst working with the Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute, where he is currently a Program Coordinator and Research Biologist. Jamal has received many awards and commendations for his work with manatees, including a 2023 Explorers Club 50 recognition, a 2018 National Geographic Photo Ark EDGE Fellowship, an Oceana Ocean Hero award, a Belize National Hero Award, and a World Wildlife Fund Planet Hero award among others. In addition, Jamal was featured in a Disney Earth Day video. Jamal is a proud recipient of the 2021  Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS) Christensen Conservation Leaders Scholarship, provided by the WCS Graduate Scholarship Program. Jamal has also published about his research, including research on manatee strandings in Belize in Oryx (Analysis of a long-term dataset of Antillean manatee strandings in Belize: implications for conservation).

Watch Jamal's final capstone presentation here - Safeguarding critical coastal habitats for the endangered Antillean manatees (Trichechus manatus anatus) of Belize

Read about Jamal's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

To ameliorate threats to the endangered Antillean manatees of Belize, I will utilize manatees as a flagship species to promote coastal conservation through a combination of scientific research, governmental and stakeholder engagement, community involvement and public education.

Faculty Advisors:
Anne Kapuscinski

Partner Organization:
South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL)

Trevor Kumec

Hometown: Washington & Santa Cruz, California

Trevor is passionate about river system management and salmonid conservation and he has participated in steelhead and salmon monitoring projects across the Pacific Northwest. Working with the Washington National Park Service, Trevor was exposed to river management’s complex and sometimes conflicting social, environmental, and economic dimensions. As a Repass-Rodgers Fellow with the CSP program, he will explore these themes while restoring salmon populations in the Sacramento River.

Watch Trevor's final capstone presentation here - Healthy Rivers and Healthy Communities: Using local collaboration to guide salmon restoration in the Yuba River

Read about Trevor's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone

He will be working with the South Yuba River Citizens League (SYRCL) to advocate for native fish populations in the Yuba River. SYRCL works to support healthy populations of salmon, steelhead, and other native species in the river by restoring degraded habitat and increasing connectivity in the river. I plan to use an interdisciplinary approach to engage communities, restore habitat, and guarantee sustainable returns of anadromous fish for future generations.

Faculty Advisors:
Andrew Fisher

Partner Organization:
The Nature Conservancy

Karlee Liddy

Hometown: Newton, New Jersey

Current position: 2024 Knauss Sea Grant Legislative Fellow

After graduating from the University of South Carolina with an Environmental Science B.S., Karlee volunteered with Peace Corps, Nicaragua as an Environmental Educator. She worked with salmonids as a Watershed Stewards Program member and now monitors salmonid populations in the Carmel River with NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service and UCSC. As a CSP graduate student, Karlee will improve policies to protect and restore Central Valley salmonids as a Repass-Rodgers Fellow.

Watch Karlee's final capstone presentation here - Deepening considerations for listed species in groundwater- dependent ecosystems

Read about Karlee's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

For her capstone project, Karlee will be seeking to understand and characterize expanded protections for federally-listed salmonids under the Sustainable Groundwater Management Act. Including:

  • Assessing to what degree Groundwater Sustainability Plans (GSPs) address“depletions of interconnected surface waters”
  • Identifying challenges and incentives for improving protections for salmonids in GSPs through semi-structured interviews
  • Co-producing a policy analysis to expand requirements for GSAs to address impacts to salmonids

Faculty Co-Advisors:
Mark Carr
Elena Finkbeiner
Larry Crowder (External Collaborating Scientist)

Partner Organization:
BlueFins

Xiaohui “Ivy” Lin

Hometown: Shenzhen, China

Current position: Genreal Director, BlueFins

Xiaohui (Ivy) Lin is the co-founder of BlueFins, a Chinese ocean conservation organization and leads the Citizen Nature Challenge Competition and Ocean Explorer Plan, which promote citizen science conservation methods. Ivy has used her public relations undergraduate background to produce and direct ‘Searching for the Coral Paradise’, a documentary about coral conservation. She also monitors corals with a team in China. As a CSP student, Ivy will explore community conservation methods that balance sustainability and cultural preservation. Ivy is also a 2021 Blue Pioneer in the Blue Pioneer Accelerator program.

Watch Ivy's final capstone presentation here - Coral At Risk: The need for coral monitoring citizen science programs in Shenzhen City, China

Read about Ivy's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

For her capstone, Ivy aims to increase divers’ participation in marine biodiversity conservation in Shenzhen City, Guangdong province, China. She will do this by increasing dive shops’/divers’ awareness and participation in ocean conservation, enhancing multi stakeholders’ understanding of Shenzhen marine biodiversity via analyzing the distribution of dive shops, and divers’ opinions on conservation, and conducting a marine biodiversity information collecting workshop based on divers’ interests.

Faculty Advisors:
Katherine Seto
Dan Brumbaugh (Collaborating Scientist)

Partner Organization:

Kevin Lunzalu

Hometown: Busia, Kenya

Current position: Co-Founder Kenyan Youth Biodiversity Network

“For anyone who is interested in a program truly grounded in solutions and providing holistic solutions to global challenges, then try the CSP program. If you are interested in influencing policies that you never imagined before, then CSP is your place.” - Kevin Lunzalu

Kevin Lunzalu is very passionate about transformative biodiversity governance, fostering youth-led practical solutions to pressing conservation challenges, and intergenerational equity. This interest first developed while completing his Bachelor’s in Wildlife Conservation and Enterprise Management at Egerton University.

He is the co-founder and national coordinator of the Kenyan Youth Biodiversity Network, one of Kenya’s largest youth-led conservation organizations by membership, building the capacity of young people to address biodiversity loss through policy advocacy, ecosystem restoration, marine action, and awareness creation.

Kevin has received several recognitions for his work on biodiversity conservation, including receiving a 2022 Wildlife Conservation Network Sidney Byers Scholarship for Wildlife Conservation, being listed among the Top 100 Young Conservation Leaders in Africa 2021Youth of the Year 2021 Award of the Youth Agenda 254, World Bank’s #Blog4Dev 2021 Winner, and Young African Leaders Initiative (YALI) Fellowship.

Kevin was invited as a youth speaker at the Fifth United Nations Environmental Assembly (UNEA 5.2)  Flagship Event on the Post-2020 Global Biodiversity Framework, organized by the UN Convention on Biological Diversity. The UNEA 5.2 saw heads of State, Ministers of Environment, and other representatives from 175 countries endorse a resolution to eliminate plastic pollution and realize an internationally legally binding treaty by 2024. He was also an invited delegate and speaker at IUCN World Conservation Congress 2021 to promote stronger youth voices in biodiversity governance.

Watch Kevin's final capstone presentation here - The Plastic Crisis: A reality show we can only cancel collectively

Read about Kevin's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

Kevin’s capstone project seeks to understand and co-design community-driven, policy-backed solutions aimed at significantly reducing the threat of marine plastics on the nesting success of endangered sea turtles in Kenya. The project will focus on Diani Beach, a globally-recognized touristic hub and travel destination that faces disproportionate impact of marine pollution. Kevin hopes to effectively apply and build on the important set of skills and knowledge acquired from the Coastal Science & Policy Program to enhance the nesting success and survival rates of sea turtle hatchlings along Diani Beach by addressing marine pollution as a key ecosystem stressor. He will work with various rights holders and authorities to realize a joint local level action plan and local policy proposal that addresses ocean-bound plastics in nesting sites where three endangered species have been documented to nest. In the longer term, the project will leverage innovative technology to enhance circularity and green job creation.

Faculty Advisors:
Elena Finkbeiner
Don Croll

Partner Organization:
The Wildlife Conservation Society – Mozambique Program

Naseeba Jamil Sidat

Hometown: Maputo, Mozambique

Naseeba has a passion for nature and understands the importance of ecosystem connectedness for conservation. She started her conservation career volunteering with marine biodiversity programs in 2012 and graduated with a Marine, Aquatic and Coastal Biology degree in 2016. She joined the Wildlife Conservation Society, Mozambique as a Technical Project Team Member in 2017. She is a Wildlife Conservation Society Beinecke African Scholar and hopes to use her graduate studies to improve her leadership and communication skills to advance biodiversity conservation and management in Mozambique and worldwide.

Watch Naseeba's mid-term capstone presentation here - Building blocks to assist fishing communities in safeguarding their livelihoods and shark and ray populations in Zalala Beach, Mozambique

Read about Naseeba's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

Naseeba aims to support coastal communities in adopting and using sustainable fishing practices that both ensure their continued success in fishing local waters and reduce chances of local extinction of shark populations, like the critical endangered scalloped hammerhead sharks, Sphyrna lewini. She plans to work on this type of shark because it is the most frequently caught species in Zalala Beach, is targeted by fishers (despite its Critically Endangered status) and contributes to the community’s livelihoods. Also, sharks play an important role in the marine food chain, by balancing the local marine ecosystem and supporting healthy numbers of fish that coastal communities rely on as their primary source of protein (Motivarash et al., 2020). She will also co-develop a Roadmap with fishing communities, which will include a menu of fisheries management measures, that will both reduce chances of local extinction of scalloped hammerhead shark populations and support sustainable fishing in Zalala Beach.

Faculty Advisors:
Katherine Seto

Partner Organization:
The Nature Conservancy (second year)
ARMS Restore Project (summer)

Olivia Won

Hometown: Oakland, CA

Current position: NOAA Margaret A. Davidson Graduate Fellow at the San Francisco Bay Reserve

Born and raised in Oakland, California, Olivia Won is a plant ecologist committed to interdisciplinary stewardship solutions for California’s coastal areas. As a Doris Duke Conservation Scholar at the University of Washington and intern with the Elwha Revegetation Project, she fell in love with the power of plants and socio-ecological restoration. Since graduating from Wesleyan University, she has worked with botanists at the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission on an array of watershed improvement projects, leading seed amplification and conservation projects for special status species and growing plants at the Sunol Native Plant Nursery. With her graduate studies, Olivia hopes to pair her passion for plants and people with further training in coastal climate change adaptation, biocultural restoration, and resilience planning. Olivia has been recognized as a rising leader numerous times including as a 2022 Global Sustainability Fellow and as a 2022 – 2024 Margaret A. Davidson Graduate Fellow. As a Global Sustainability Fellow, Olivia will conduct research in coastal Madagascar during the summer of 2022. As a Davidson Fellow she will conduct research within the San Francisco Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve.

Watch Olivia's final capstone presentation here - Towards equitable nature-based coastal adaptation in California

Read about Olivia's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

For her capstone, Olivia will explore avenues for advancing equity and justice considerations for multi-benefit nature-based climate adaptation efforts in coastal regions. During her second year, Olivia will partner with the Nature Conservancy to support the California team’s work on potential future habitat conservation planning for coastal habitats threatened by sea-level rise.

During the summer, as a Global Sustainability Scholars fellow, she will work with the ARMS Restore project on interdisciplinary coral reef and seagrass restoration work in the Bay of Ranobe, Madagascar.

Class of 2022

Faculty Advisors:

Anne Kapuscinski

Elena Finkbeiner

Partner Organizations:

Green 2.0

Ocean Conservancy

Kalina Browne

Hometown: Villa, St. Vincent and the Grenadines & New York, United States

Current position: Youth Program Coordinator at People’s Climate Innovation Center

Kalina Browne (she/her) is passionate about addressing Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (JEDI) in the conservation field with a specific focus on nonprofits. Kalina currnetly works for People's Climate Innovation Center as their Youth Program Coordinator. She is focused on Climate Innovation's Young Climate Leaders of Color (YCLC) program and National Association of Climate Resilience Planners program. Directly after graduating Kalina worked for the Anthropocene Alliance as a Program Manager. One of the impactful deliverables from her capstone work was a research report, released on World Ocean’s Day, that helps guide environmental organizations toward better engagement with coastal communities of color (Coastal Considerations: Improving Ngo Engagement With Coastal Communities Of Color). Browne also received a paid fellowship to work on the project on behalf of Green 2.0, a national watchdog organization focused on diversity and equity in the environmental sector.

After completing her bachelors in Environmental Geoscience from the University of Buffalo in 2018, Kalina returned to her island home nation of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in Caribbean to work with the government where she was a procurement intern where she gained insight into project management by assisting on the Regional Development Vulnerability Reduction Project funded by the World Bank.

As an islander, she has a strong interest in the effects of climate change and the intersection with justice which was her focus when she worked with Ocean Conservancy’s (OC) Climate Program as a Roger Arliner Young (RAY) fellow from the summer of 2019 to summer of 2020. During her time at OC she participated at both the state and international level. She was engaged with California’s Ocean Protection Council and had the opportunity to attend the United Nations Framework on Climate Change 25th Conference of Parties in Madrid, Spain in December 2019.

Watch Kalina's final capstone presentation here - Integrating Justice, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion within Conservation Non-profits

Read about Kalina's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

Kalina worked with the non-profit Green 2.0 on a project funded by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation to explore the relationship between coastal communities and NGOs. As a watchdog and recordkeeper in the environmental sector, Green 2.0 seeks to better understand how NGOs are working in and with the communities they vow to support. The project will focus three geographic areas; California, Florida, and Louisiana while also conducting a more in depth analysis by engaging with six to eight NGOs as case-studies. While working with them, Kalina furthered her knowledge in the Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (JEDI) sphere while helping Green 2.0 accomplish their goals. Beginning in the fall, she worked with the Ocean Conservancy to address JEDI. She wishes to be an inspiration for other young, Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) in environmental and conservation fields.

Faculty Advisor:
Borja Requero (Spring/Summer)
Lindsey Dillon
Kristy Kroeker

Partner Organization:
UC Coastal Resilience and Climate Adaptation Initiative (Spring/Summer)
San Francisco Estuary Partnership

Diana Fu

Hometown: California, United States

Current position: Environmental Planner at San Francisco Estuary Partnership

As an educator, critical race scholar, and cultural worker, Diana is committed to working with low-income communities of color to address historic environmental injustices and equitably prepare for the impacts of climate change. During her capstone year, she joined the San Francisco Estuary Partnership as an Environmental Planner, where she continues to advocate for equitable and just planning processes around the bay.

Diana’s passion for environmental and climate justice began when she participated in a youth empowerment program with Rising Sun Center for Opportunity in Oakland, CA. She went on to nurture her interests in racial justice and the environment at Northwestern University, where she received her B.A.’s in Asian American Studies and Environmental Science. After completing her bachelors, she began her early career in New York City by living and working in the South Bronx as an environmental educator and citizen science coordinator. Diana later expanded her work to all five boroughs of New York City by coordinating Billion Oyster Project’s flagship educational initiative, the Oyster Research Station (ORS) program, which brought thousands of students, teachers, and community members to the New York Harbor waterfront to monitor the restoration of native Eastern Oysters.

Diana is also a playwright, essayist, and Pushcart-nominated poet interested in the use of storytelling to build inclusive environmental movements that center minority voices. In February 2021, she published her first chapbook titled “In All Spaces Liminal”. She has been the recipient of many notable scholarships and fellowships for her writing, including the 2020 Superhero Clubhouse Eco-Playwriting Fellowship, Leonard A. Slade, Jr. Poetry Fellowship for Writers of Color, and the Katharine Bakeless Nason Scholarship for her attendance at Bread Loaf Environmental Writers’ Conference. Diana is also a recipient of the 2021-2022 Switzer Fellowship.

Watch Diana's final capstone presentation here - Advancing Equitable Coastal Adaptation in the San Francisco Bay Area

Read about Diana's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone

For her capstone, Diana worked with the San Francisco Estuary Partnership (SFEP) and the UC Climate Resilience and Adaptation Initiative (UC Climate Resilience Project) to advance equitable climate adaptation. She first synthesized a landscape analysis of adaptation plans put forth by cities and counties in the San Francisco Bay Area with the UC Climate Resilience Project, and then used it to inform her work at SFEP in creating an inclusive communications plan, public forums, and long-term strategic plans for facilitating collaborative dialogue with underserved and frontline communities.

Faculty Advisor:
Kristy Kroeker

Partner Organization:
Ocean Visions (Summer)
Blue Ocean Barns (Capstone)

Sarah Mastroni

Hometown: California, United States

Current position: Program Officer at Ocean Visions

“While in the CSP Program, you work outside academia to get real world experience in a supportive environment. This gave me a lot of confidence and practical skills that I was able to seamlessly apply to my program officer role at Ocean Visions.” - Sarah Mastroni

Sarah’s interest in oceans and marine biology was cultivated at an early age along the coasts of Northern California before she went to UCLA to study Marine Biology. After graduating from the CSP program, Sarah accepted a Program Officer position with Ocean Visions.

Sarah brought extensive field experience working on marine science projects in the Great Barrier reef and on NSF-funded projects of climate change on intertidal zones in Alaska when she joined CSP. She has also engaged in science education and interpretation roles in California and Alaska. She’s particularly interested in macroalgae as it relates to healthily functioning ecosystems and ocean-based communities. Hear Sarah talk about her capstone project on the podcast Santa Cruz Naturalist here or read more below.

Watch Sarah's final capstone presentation here - Advancing Adoption of Algae for Cattle Feed to Reduce Methane Emissions

Read about Sarah's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

In Summer 2021, Sarah joined Ocean Visions, a research consortium and network for ocean solutions, as a Fellow. Over the course of the summer, she helped create the “Ocean Solutions Expert Network”, a database that allows Ocean Visions to move against identified “grand challenges” by catalyzing connections and resources. This built on her previous work with Ocean Visions where she helped to create three interactive roadmaps for ocean-based carbon dioxide removal pathways. Sarah continued working with Ocean Visions helping keep the Ocean Solutions Expert Network up to date and assisting with an international expert working group on sinking seaweed for carbon sequestration.  In Fall 2022, “Answering Critical Questions About Sinking Macroalgae for Carbon Dioxide Removal: A Research Framework to Investigate Sequestration Efficacy and Environmental Impacts” was published. Based on her capstone engagement, she co-authored the report with Ocean Visions and the Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute.

For her capstone, Sarah worked with Blue Ocean Barns, under the mentorship of CEO Joan Salwen and VP of Product Vivienne Hay. Here, she will focus on removing policy barriers and roadblocks on the path to nationwide integration of red alga Asparagopsis taxiformis in cattle feed to reduce methane emissions. Her work involves assessing the positioning of Asparagopsis in the current market and strategizing on ways to integrate Asparagopsis into existing government programs. She is excited by the opportunity to dive into climate policy and work on a project with such meaningful impacts.

Faculty Advisors:
Mark Carr
Pete Raimondi

Partner Organization:
The Nature Conservancy (capstone)
UC Irvine (summer)

Andrea Paz Lacavex

Hometown: Ensenada, Mexico

Current position: PhD student in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UC Santa Cruz

As an interdisciplinary scientist, Andrea is keenly interested in strengthening management of marine areas. Following graduation from the CSP program, Andrea is furthering her capstone work by joining the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department at UCSC as a PhD student.

Andrea has supported coastal ecosystem monitoring efforts in the Mexican Pacific and brings extensive experience working with multiple universities and NGOs on scientific projects in marine and terrestrial environments. In addition, Andrea has lead workshops on climate change and oceans for fishing communities in Baja California. For her capstone, Andrea wants to explore innovative techniques for restoring kelp forests and temperate reef habitats that also support resilient coastal communities. You can read about her innovative work and recent participation in the Blackstone Launchpad Pitch competition here. Andrea was selected as a Mexican representative for the UN Ocean Conference Youth and Innovation Forum where she’ll contribute to scaling up ocean action based on science and innovation for the implementation of SDG14: stocktaking, partnerships and solutions.

Watch Andrea's final capstone presentation here - Green Gravel in Baja California: Exploring a kelp restoration technique with a multisectoral lens

Read about Andrea's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

For her capstone, Andrea explored the use of the innovative kelp restoration technique, “green gravel,” as an effective way to restore kelp forests in Baja California, Mexico. In Summer 2021, she worked with researchers at UC Irvine to learn more about the culturing and implementation of this innovative technique and in the second year as part of her capstone work, she partnered with The Nature Conservancy’s Kelp Restoration team to link similar innovative work in California to restoration in Baja California, Mexico.

Faculty Advisors:
Don Croll
Elena Finkbeiner

Partner Organization:
In Refinement

Niomi Pridina

Hometown: Jakarta Selatan, Indonesia

Current position:

Niomi began her career in marine conservation in 2015, while she was working at MantaWatch, a manta ray conservation organization. In this position, she designed and implemented an internship program in collaboration with local dive tourism operators to improve manta ray conservation at Komodo National Park. In 2016, she was selected to participate in the East-West Center Fellowship in Hawai’i to develop collaborative relationships around environmental issues with other ASEAN leaders. Since then, she has worked with various international non-governmental organizations, including, RARE and Conservation International Indonesia, where she supported programs that focused on the improvement of small-scale fisheries management in coastal communities around Indonesia. These experiences have informed her understanding of the importance of policy-making in biodiversity conservation. She is particularly interested in how governance and stakeholder engagement improve local community livelihoods.

Watch Niomi's final capstone presentation here -  Understanding the impact of livelihood-based interventions for manta ray conservation on human well-being in Lamakera, East Flores, Indonesia

Read about Niomi's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

Niomi’s capstone was supported by the Misool Foundation and the University of Oxford and focused on improving alternative livelihood interventions in Lamakera’s coastal community as a part of the approach in improving the mobulid rays conservation. She conducted a series of social-economic surveys to understand how the conservation measures has impacted the community’s current conditions and human wellbeing. Understanding how these interventions have impacted the community was essential to improving current and future alternative livelihood interventions and ensure that conservation is ethical and respects the rights of local people and vulnerable communities. Thus, the lessons and approach documented in this capstone can be replicated in other places with similar issues, potentially increasing the adoption of successful interventions for reducing mobulid ray utilization.

Faculty Advisors:

Eric Palkovacs

Anne Kapuscinski

Partner Organization:

Ocean Science Trust

Timothy Scully

Repass-Rodgers Fellowship on California Salmon Restoration Policy

Hometown: California, United States

Current position: Environmental Scientist, State Water Resources Control Board

“The CSP Program opens up amazing professional and leadership opportunities. The Repass-Rogers Fellowship in Salmon Restoration Policy and my work with Ocean Science Trust led me directly to recieving a position with the California Legislature.” - Timothy Scully

Prior to graduating form the CSP program, Tim was hired to be the consultant for the California Joint Committee on Fisheries and Aquaculture chaired by Senator McGuire. In this role, Tim applied his breadth of knowledge gained through the CSP program and his prior work for the US Fish & Wildlife Service. In spring 2023, Tim was hired as an environmental scientist at the California Water Resources Control Board. There Tim supports management of drought conditions in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta watershed, including developing regulations, communication, and collaboration with stakeholders. Tim also provides technical scientific support for administrative hearings and conducting water use studies and compliance monitoring. Additionally, Tim acts as a scientific expert on special projects and processing complex water right applications.

For the US Fish & Wildlife Service in Lodi, California Tim worked on a monitoring program for native salmon and delta smelt in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, which has informed his particular interest in the Repass-Rodgers Fellowship at CSP. Timothy believes the CSP program will help him develop his goal of designing creative solutions that will help solve the water wars in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and save its endangered aquatic species. Timothy has previously served as an AmeriCorps Watershed Stewards Program Member with the San Luis Obispo Steelhead Initiative, working on various restoration projects and monitoring programs with the goal of enhancing the South-Central California Coast steelhead population. Timothy graduated from Humboldt State University with a B.S. in Environmental Management & Protection, and was awarded the Humboldt Leadership Scholarship in 2016.

Watch Tim's final casptone presentation here - Using Policy-relevant Science to Accelerate Progress on California Central Valley Chinook Salmon Restoration

Read about Tim's Year 2 Capstone:

Tim  is focused his capstone on salmon restoration policy in California’s Central Valley with an emphasis on hatchery, habitat, and water management. In summer 2021, Tim  worked with the Golden State Salmon Association  on advocating for salmon restoration projects such as fish passage barrier removal and hatchery infrastructure upgrades. He also wrote an  OpEd in Cal Matters  to share his advice on hatchery upgrades.  Tim  then engaged with two different practitioner partners for his capstone: the California Ocean Science Trust (OST) and  the California  Legislature Joint Committee on Fisheries and Aquaculture. For the Ocean Science Trust,  Tim  worked with the Legislative Science Services program and explored how OST can get more involved with salmon issues in California. Additionally,  Tim  was hired in March 2022 to be the consultant for the Joint Committee on Fisheries and Aquaculture chaired by Senator McGuire.  In this position,  Tim  is studying California policy issues and problems related to Fisheries and Aquaculture in order to develop longer range solutions. He will also help to plan hearings or educational forums that the committee will hold on fisheries and aquaculture.

Faculty Advisors:
Mike Beck

Partner Organization:
The Nature Conservancy

Austen Stovall

Hometown: North Carolina, United States

Current position: 2023 Knauss Sea Grant Legislative Fellow

Originally from the town of Kill Devil Hills on the coast of North Carolina, Austen has a deep connection to the coastal zone. Post undergraduate, Austen worked for a diverse array of conservation nonprofits focused on coral reef conservation. Austen has extensive field experience working on coral reefs and with coastal communities in the US Virgin Islands, Panama, Florida, and the Turks and Caicos. Most recently, Austen served as the 2018-2020 National Coral Reef Management Fellow in the US Virgin Islands under the Division of Coastal Zone Management at the St. Croix East End Marine Park. Working on the ground in coastal resource management solidified Austen’s desire to work in coastal management and policy. Additionally, Austen’s experience working on St. Croix just months after the devastating Hurricanes Irma and Maria reinforced her interest not just in studying marine systems, but societal and environmental vulnerabilities to climate change. Austen had two outlined goals for her time in the CSP program: “to advocate for coastal adaptation and resilience in the coastal planning process, and to build community capacity to advocate for systematic changes that will prepare them for the threats that climate change poses to their coastal livelihoods”. Upon graduating Austen began working as an Associate Specialist for the Coastal Resilience Lab at UCSC. In addition, she was selected as a 2023 Sea Grant John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow Finalist.

Watch Austen's final capstone presentation here - Coral Reef Restoration for Risk Reduction

Read about Austen's Year 2 Capstone:

During summer 2021, Austen participated in the Blackstone LaunchPad powered by Techstars program where she received mentorship and guidance to cultivate her capstone project idea. For her capstone, Austen worked with The Nature Conservancy to conduct a Feasibility Assessment for Hazard Mitigation funding of a reef restoration project within FEMA Region IX and industry experts to advance the field of funding reef restoration for risk reduction projects within U.S. coral reef jurisdictions. As part of her capstone work, she worked with the UCSC Coastal Resilience Lab and Mike Beck to support UCSC's multi-agency work group (UCSC, FEMA, USACE, USGS, NOAA) in developing guidance for the US Coral Reef Task Force (USCRTF) to help local project proponents apply for FEMA/USACE funding for Coral Reef Restoration for Risk Reduction (CR4). The report was presented on Aug 31, 2022 at the USCRTF meeting in Hawai’i and was approved at the USCRTF Business Meeting in September.

Faculty Advisor:
Erika Zavaleta
Sikina Jinnah

Partner Organizations:
City of Oakland Public Works Department, Environmental Services Division
Environmental Science Associates

Chinonso Uzowihe

Hometown: Washington D.C., United States and Nigeria

Current position: Management Intern, Environmental Services Division for the City of Oakland

During his capstone year, Chinonso started working with the Sustainability Team within the city of Oakland’s Environmental Services Division. He continues to work in this role helping to advance and advocate for equitable, just and inclusive planning processes in Oakland, California.

Chinonso is particularly interested in the CSP program because of its focus on coastal communities and climate change, location, and partnerships. Furthermore, he points out that being in California would be an opportunity to learn how the state and local cities are taking steps to combat environmental change, carbon emissions, sea level rise, and generally acting as a global leader in environmental policy. While at CSP, Chinonso would like to explore stakeholder engagement in coastal climate action, in addition to how current environmental policy impacts local communities and coastal health. He has participated in multiple NSF funded field opportunities, including the STEM Student Experiences Aboard Ships (STEMSEAS) and an REU in Belize.

Watch Chino's final capstone presentation here - Equity Through Community Access to Climate Action Information

Read about Chino's Year 2 Capstone:

For his capstone, Chino worked with two partners to address equity and environmental justice in Climate Action Plan (CAP) development and implementation. Chinonso continued to work with his primary capstone partner, the Sustainability Team within the city of Oakland’s Environmental Services Division, even after graduation. His project focused on supporting the new Equitable Climate Action Plan’s (ECAP) implementation by both consolidating and highlighting the city’s climate equity progress on the ECAP’s goals; the latter was accomplished by creating an easily accessible story map that allows residents to stay informed and can help keep the city accountable. Chinonso believes lack of access to information contributes to inequities and thus using this story map to centralize information for all community members will be a step towards addressing this.

During the summer and fall, he worked as an intern with a consulting firm, Environmental Science Associates, to identify best practices in incorporating equity and EJ into CAPs they develop in the future. This time with them was also spent independently evaluating the environmental justice policies of California state agencies and expanding his technical and management skills.

Faculty Advisors:
Carrie Pomeroy
Eric Palkovacs

Partner Organization:
FISHBIO

William Ware

Hometown: Georgia, United States

Current position: Assistant Project Manager at

Will endeavors to help both fisheries and water managers assess how natural resource policies affect diverse stakeholders. This career-long pursuit is fueled by his interest in fish and fishers. He explored connections between fish and people as an interdisciplinary marine science major in Florida where he engaged fishers, government researchers, and university scientists situated in coastal and inland waters. In California Will continues to investigate how fisheries and water management affect human wellbeing in the San Francisco Estuary and Central Valley of California through his work on the state’s striped bass (Morone saxatilis) fishery and its complex interaction with salmonid restoration (read more below). He was an inaugural “Ocean and Climate Justice Fellow” at Save Our Shores and the Resource Center for Nonviolence. Currently, William is the Bay Area Region Project Coordinator for California Trout (CalTrout).

Watch William's final capstone presentation here - Striped Bass Ecology: Predicting Occupancy on the Lower Stanislaus to Inform Research & Management

Read about Will's Summer Placement and Year 2 Capstone:

Will contributed to the striped bass management solution pathway by developing models of when and where striped bass are likely to be present on the Stanislaus River, which improved the scientific knowledge needed to inform resource management decisions. During the summer, he completed work on a variety of projects related to striped bass including reviewing literature and analyzing data on striped bass in California (e.g., coastal recreational fishers catch records, monitoring programs in the San Francisco Estuary). The broad review narrowed his research to the lower Stanislaus River, a forty-mile river segment stretching from the Oakdale Recreation Area downstream to the confluence with the San Joaquin River. Will’s statistical analyses and visuals revealed clear differences in the sizes of striped bass sampled at different times within sampling seasons, yet the factors driving these size differences in seasonal presence remain unknown.

During his Year 2 Capstone, Will used dynamic, multi-season occupancy models to estimate when and where two size classes of striped bass were likely to be present in the lower Stanislaus River, over annual sampling seasons from 2019 to 2021. He modeled with input from FISHBIO researchers, Tyler Pilger, Ph.D., and Matt Peterson, as well as UC Santa Cruz researchers, Chris Wilmers, Ph.D., and John Morgan. The overarching project goal is to understand when and where striped bass are in the lower Stanislaus River during sampling events from 2019-2021. Will’s capstone project explicitly compared the seasonal occurrence of subadult and adult striped bass along an understudied Central Valley river using novel methods that leverage standardized monitoring data collected over multiple years. The project outcome is to show water and fisheries managers how body size, river flow (cfs), site, and sampling day correlate with annual striped bass presence in the Stanislaus River.

Class of 2021

Faculty Advisors:
Anne R. Kapuscinski
Elena Finkbeiner

Partner Organization:
USAID Sea Project

Siti Indriasari Galuh Sekar Arum

Hometown: Bogor, Indonesia

Galuh is passionate about effective policy development, conservation, advocacy, and communication. While studying at UCSC, she was excited to learn more about coastal science and policy, share her international experience, and learn new approaches to enhance the efficacy of policy and practices in Indonesia. After graduating from CSP, Galuh facilitated building a learning network for marine and fisheries NGOs in Indonesia, a network that is now taking shape with its participatory-built governance and run voluntarily by its members. She is also a professional facilitator and working as a Partnerships and Network Specialist for Digdaya, a consulting company based in Indonesia. She also works as an Advisor and Analyst at KKI Warsi’s Partnerships for Forests Project where she advises the team in managing B-to-B-based collaborative action to protect the Bukit Tigapuluh forest landscape in Sumatra. In her free time, Galuh works voluntarily as the Director for Talent and Institutional Development at Forest Digest, an emerging environmental-focused media run by volunteers.

Galuh holds a degree in Forest Conservation and Ecotourism from IPB University. She served as the student delegate at various events including the United Nations Forum on Forest in 2004, 2005 and 2006. As an undergraduate she connected Indonesian students with various international institutions so that they could gain forestry experience from a world perspective. Later she worked as a research assistant at the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) and as a Forestry Officer at Tropenbos International Indonesia. In 2008, she joined Rare Indonesia, an international conservation organization that specializes in locally-led behavior change initiatives to protect natural resources. Galuh helped establish the Policy Department at Rare in Indonesia to advocate for evidence-based policies at district, provincial, and national levels. As part of Rare, Galuh built inter-institutional partnerships to enhance success. Through her work, Galuh saw first hand the impact sustainable small-scale fisheries can have on global fisheries.

Watch Galuh’s final capstone presentation hereBuilding the Pathway to Scale Marine Conservation Projects (A Case Study of USAID SEA Project in West Papua Province, Indonesia)

Read about Galuh’s Year 2 Capstone:

Galuh worked closely with the USAID Sustainable Ecosystem Advanced (SEA) Project team in Indonesia to highlight bright spots and lessons learned for integrating and sustaining successful activities in government programs. The result of this research will both highlight best practices for successful project integration but also ensure that future beneficial marine and fisheries projects can be sustained more successfully and result in government-led impact.

Patrick Cage smiling
Faculty Advisor:
Anne R. Kapuscinski

Partner Organization:
Climate Cabinet

Aspen Cage

Hometown: San Diego, California

Aspen (they/them) is committed to data for progressive environmental and social change. Before CSP, Aspen worked in international climate policy and carbon quantification with the Greenhouse Gas Management Institute for nearly 4 years. During this time, they worked at the science-policy interface in tracking progress and creating accountability under the Paris Agreement. They helped launch new academic programs in China, Indonesia, and Central Africa, relocated to the Caribbean to establish a 12-country “technical policy co-op,” developed guidance to help sustainability managers avoid low-quality offsets, and participated in five United Nations climate summits. Aspen is drawn to research approaches that blend qualitative and qualitative analyses to deliver insights and spur action. Through the CSP program, Aspen aimed to expand their analytical toolkit and improve their systems thinking skills for strategic climate action.

Since graduating from the Coastal Science and Policy program, Aspen has started as the Survey Statistician at Avalanche Insights, tasked with enhancing statistical rigor and expanding the organization’s analytical offerings. This role allows them to leverage data to help develop strategy for both progressive issue campaigns and electoral efforts. Aspen can draw a direct line from the experiences, relationships, and skillbuilding of their Capstone year to this position and is excited about creating positive systems change.

Watch Aspen’s final capstone presentation hereClimate Democracy 2020: Quantifying and Amplifying Down-ballot Climate Campaigning in the 2020 Elections

Read about Aspen’s Year 2 Capstone:

Polling in the 2020 election cycle suggested a novel role for climate as an electoral issue among key persuasion and turnout voters in the United States. For their capstone, Aspen studied the role of climate and clear air in the 2020 elections, and how this political shift might be leveraged for political and policy change. For the second half of 2020, Aspen served as the first Head of Impact for Climate Cabinet LLC., a startup offering district-specific climate data and election messaging to down-ballot candidates running for national and state office. Aspen created systems to capture and visualize Climate Cabinet’s impact and to improve program effectiveness. Aspen focused the second half of their Capstone applying data science approaches to understand candidate climate messaging and intersectionality, using a corpus of over a million political candidate Twitter messages. Throughout their Capstone, Aspen developed their skills in programming and statistics to conduct analyses and deliver meaning.

Faculty Advisors:
Katherine Seto
Elena Finkbeiner

Partner Organizations:
Conservation International
Blue Ventures
Cornwall Good Seafood Guide

Tom Collinson

Hometown: United Kingdom

Tom’s interest in coastal sustainability stems from his background in the Scottish commercial fisheries and aquaculture industry, marine predator research at the Marine Biological Association of the UK and a lifelong fascination with the sea. After graduating from the University of Bristol, Tom founded the education and outreach initiative Tom’s Rockpool Safaris which introduced the public to the ecology of the seashore. Before arriving in Santa Cruz, Tom worked with the international conservation NGO, Blue Ventures, to catalogue community-led fisheries management initiatives in the Western Indian Ocean. He is also a passionate fisherman himself.

Tom is driven by the knowledge that fishing is the cornerstone of food security, livelihoods and cultural identity for millions of the world’s coastal people. He believes that advocating for small-scale fishers’ rights to access and manage their local fisheries is critical to protecting coastal ecosystems from overexploitation. Through the CSP Program, Tom worked with coastal communities in Liberia to co-create a national fishery management plan for sea cucumbers. Since graduating from the program, Tom has re-joined Blue Ventures as Senior Advocacy Officer and is currently working to build a global coalition to advocate against destructive bottom trawling in coastal waters.

Watch Tom’s final capstone presentation hereThe Sea Cucumber Project Liberia: Building Thriving Fisheries With Coastal Communities or Libera’s Sea Cucumbers In A Pickle: Managing A New Fishery To Protect Ecosystems And Livelihoods

Read about Tom’s Year 2 Capstone:

For his capstone, Tom explored how the introduction of private property rights and new governance institutions for inshore fisheries in Liberia, in the form of Wealth-Based Fisheries and Co-Management Associations, are affecting wealth, rights and resilience in coastal fishing communities. Tom will also be working alongside Conservation International in Liberia to support the Blue Oceans Programme, which aims to promote a healthy ocean for human well-being.

Faculty Advisor:
Mark Carr

Partner Organization:
Wildlife Conservation Society

Maxwell Azali Kodia

Hometown: Mombasa, Kenya

Azali has been involved in a variety of coral reef ecology and fisheries projects in Kenya, and has worked closely with local communities to build their capacity in adaptive management through training on simple coral reef monitoring methods. Until joining the CSP program, Azali worked with WCS Kenya Marine Program as an early career Research Scientist, where he participated in forums to disseminate research results to communities and fisheries practitioners. He is particularly interested in building local capacity for fish stock assessments by implementing participatory length-based assessment methods to inform management and encourage sustainable practices. With a degree in Coastal Science and Policy, Azali hopes to strengthen the connection between effective policy, natural resource sustainability, and coastal community livelihoods.

Watch Maxwell’s final capstone presentation hereCoral reef conservation in changing climates and human population

 

Faculty Advisor:
Anne Kapuscinski

Partner Organization:
Healthy Fire

Abel Mkulama

Hometown: Malawi, Africa

Current position: Program Associate at Center for Effective Global Action

Abel holds a Bachelor of Science in Natural Resources Management from Lilongwe University of Agriculture and Natural Resources. He has four years experience working with local communities as a youth leader in conservation. In 2018, with a research grant, he worked on a cooking-briquette innovation to provide alternative source of cooking energy to minimize deforestation of coastal areas. His work on mobilizing coastal communities to preserve underwater heritage at Lake Malawi National Park received special recognition by UNESCO. His work volunteering at National Youth Network on Climate Change focused on empowering communities to adapt to climate change has earned him recognition at Global Youth Biodiversity Network, Young African Leadership Initiative and the Global Green Grants Fund. Abel represented Malawi as a youth delegate for United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) COP 25 and was recently published in Climate Impacts on Agricultural and Natural Resource Sustainability in Africa. Abel has also been named Small and Medium Size Entrepreneurs Role Model for African Union Citizens and Diaspora Directorate (CIDO) for establishing a model farm in rural Malawi for climate-smart agriculture practices. Upon completion of the CSP program, he hopes to open a research institute to tackle issues of sustainability as well as inform policies in Southern Africa.

Watch Abel’s final capstone presentation hereDesigning a Circular Economy Cooking Technology Startup in Lilongwe, Malawi: Preventing Deforestation and Household Air Pollution and Mitigating Climate Change

Read about Abel’s Year 2 Capstone:

For his capstone, Abel conducted a comparative study of thermal properties and the cost-effectiveness of pellets and briquettes, to improve on his prior innovation of a deforestation-free, solid fuel made from recycled agricultural waste. Abel will explore appropriate designs of cookstoves and compute carbon offsets benefits of pellets and briquettes using the improved cookstoves. He will also develop a business plan and pitch deck for attracting investments to a new cooking technology startup that he plans to launch after graduation in Malawi. To contribute new knowledge to science, he will publish the lessons learned from the capstone year in a peer-reviewed journal.

Faculty Advisor:
Don Croll

Partner Organizations:
Conservation International
Thresher Shark Project Indonesia

Rafid Shidqi

Hometown: Indonesia

Current position: Founder Thresher Shark Indonesia; Ph.D. candidate at Duke University

Rafid is an early-career conservationist from the city South Tangerang, Indonesia. He has recieved numerous awards for his leadership in conservation including a 2021 Marsh Award for Early Career Conservation, nomination for a 2021 Pew Fellowship for Marine Conservation, an East-West Center fellowship in Hawai’i and as a Conservation Leadership Programme Future Conservationist. After he graduated from university, Rafid moved and worked in the epicenter of marine biodiversity—the coral triangle region of Indonesia. His passion for sharks and rays was nurtured through volunteer work in Lamakera, East Nusa Tenggara—the biggest manta ray hunting community in the world. Rafid conducted ecology research on endangered sharks and rays, and is developing specific goals for solving the livelihood conflicts with Indonesian remote coastal communities who are dependent on these species. Until joining CSP he led the Thresher Shark Project Indonesia, an initiative to transition communities from traditional shark-hunting to sustainable alternative livelihoods using research, stakeholder engagement and education (check out this story map and short documentary about their work that features Rafid throughout). He believes that endangered species protection and community livelihoods are mutually important. Through CSP he helped develop thresher shark policy and examined trade-offs of conservation policy to find innovative approaches that help conserve endangered species, while also maintaining livelihoods of coastal communities.

Watch Rafid’s final capstone presentation hereBetween Shark and Livelihoods: Informing Policies for Thresher Shark Conservation in Alor, Indonesia

Read about Rafid’s Year 2 Capstone:

For his capstone, Rafid investigated the critical habitat of Pelagic Thresher Shark (Alopias pelagicus) using a combination of satellite and acoustic telemetry within Alor Marine Protected Area. The project also reviewed the potential of tourism as alternative livelihood solutions for shark fishing communities and produce a policy analysis for improving shark conservation in the region. Click here to watch a short video that highlights Rafid’s work.

Faculty Advisors:
Don Croll
Elena Finkbeiner

Partner Organizations:
Conservation International
World Wildlife Fund

Juan Carlos Jeri Vidal

Hometown: Lima, Peru

Juan Carlos is passionate about the conservation of coastal ecosystems for the benefit of both wildlife and humans. During his undergraduate years he was involved with the Punta San Juan Program, working for the conservation and research of some of the most important breeding populations of seabirds and marine mammals in Peru. He recently joined WWF’s marine program, contributing to projects such as the reduction of bycatch of marine megafauna and developing environmental education tools for coastal communities. Juan Carlos is excited to collaborate with a diverse community of peers in the CSP Program. He aspires to lead efforts for the decision ­making process and implementation of protected areas that contribute to the conservation of coastal ecosystems and the development of local communities.

Watch Juan Carlos’ final capstone presentation hereImproving Human Welfare in the Peruvian Mahi Mahi Fishery

Read about Juan Carlos’ Year 2 Capstone

Juan Carlos piloted a triple-impact approach for the evaluation of small scale fisheries within the scope of a Fisheries Improvement Project (FIP), assessing environmental, social and economic performance. The evaluation tool will be tested for the Peruvian mahi-mahi longline fishery.

Class of 2020

Faculty Advisor:
Mark Carr

Partner Organizations:
Environmental Defense Fund
Belize Fisheries Department

Shakera Arnold

Hometown: Belize City, Belize

After receiving her masters, Shakera joined the Belize Fisheries Department as its Marine Reserves Science Manager under the Ecosystems-based Management Unit. She is the Fisheries Officer in charge of planning and implementing environmental monitoring and research programs to ensure that changes in the general ecology of the marine and coastal environment are detected and that these environments are safeguarded. She is also responsible for ensuring the compliance with all monitoring programs implemented throughout the Marine Reserves Network. Prior to joining CSP, Shakera worked as a reserve manager for the Belize Fisheries Department and as an adjunct lecturer at the University of Belize teaching Environmental Conservation and Development, and as an Assistant Coral Watch Coordinator at Ecomar Belize for the Coral Watch Project. Her passion for conservation compels her to protect and conserve her country’s natural resources, as well as educating others about the importance of sustainable development and conservation. With her degree in CSP and current position, her goals are to implement effective policies and practices for conservation and sustainable development, to help diverse audiences understand and appreciate the value of conservation, and to ensure that our rich biodiversity is protected for future generations to enjoy. Shakera is committed to strengthening the sustainability of the Belizean conch fishery by enhancing the fisheries management system and integration of successful management strategies.

Read about Shakera’s Year 2 Capstone:

In July 2020, Shakera will return to work with the Belize Fisheries Department’s Ecosystems-based Management Unit where she will continue to support implementation of effective monitoring and promotion of sustainable fisheries in Belize.

Watch Shakera’s Final Capstone Presentation hereEnsuring a Sustainable Conch Fishery in Belize

Faculty Advisor:
Kai Zhu

Partner Organizations:
Understory (formerly Comon Solutions)
UC Reserves
Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve System
The Nature Conservancy

Ross Davison

Hometown: Mountain View, California

Current position: Chief Executive Officer at Understory

Ross is a remote sensing specialist innovating tools to protect our natural capital and the communities that rely on them. He has a particular expertise in 3D reality capture technology methods and applications and has spent nearly a decade working with private, public, and multinational stakeholders to enact high tech, innovative conservation methods across 21 countries.

Watch Ross’s final capstone presentation hereModernizing Our Methods:Feasibility testing of new analytic tools to fill information gaps and reduce monitoring costs

For his capstone, Ross focused on quantifying and assessing anthropogenic activity and environmental hazard effects on the natural world to better mitigate negative outcomes and improve the resiliency of vulnerable coastal communities. To accomplish this, Ross feasibility tested tools he helped develop prior to joining the program to monitor and assess natural capital with a variety of partners and in a diverse set of ecosystems. These partners included The Nature Conservancy, The National Estuarine Research Reserve System, and Researchers at UC Berkeley. Each partner provided Ross with a unique issue: With The Nature Conservancy, Ross informed invasive species removal strategy for The Jack and Laura Dangermond Preserve; at Elkhorn Slough Ross worked with site managers to quantify temporal distribution of harmful algae blooms and eutrophication in protected nursery habitats; and in at the Angelo Coast Range Reserve Ross quantified algae conversion rates in the Eel River watershed to inform research on algae’s impact on the surrounding habitats.

Since the culmination of the program, Ross has formalized these efforts into Understory (formerly Comon Solutions), a company focused on remote monitoring and evaluation of conservation interventions and natural capital. Ross is a co-founder and the Chief Executive Officer for Understory. Ross and his team were also recently accepted into the Google Climate Change Accelerator and previously the Tech Futures Group (read more here). By working with Understory, natural resource managers and conservation specialists can accurately monitor and assess their targeted interventions, understand the factors driving their success or failure, and allow them to make rapid adjustments to adapt to the needs of their specific ecosystem. Since completing the CSP Program, Ross was also accepted into the Wild Gift Fellowship as part of the 2020 fellow class.

Faculty Advisor:
Anne Kapuscinski

Partner Organizations:
David and Lucile Packard Foundation
Qingdao Marine Conservation Society

Dingxi Safari Fang

China

Hometown: Safari is an interdisciplinary scientist and ocean conservationist. Growing up next to a polluted Yangtze River, she aspired from an early age to work in environmental conservation. She is particularly interested in aquaculture and fisheries, environmental behavior, and community-based conservation. Her CSP capstone research identified strategies, high impact interventions, and a working Theory of Change for China’s sustainable marine aquaculture in partnership with local practitioners and the David and Lucile Packard Foundation’s China Marine Strategy. She conducted filed research in China, performed literature and policy analyses, and developed a working Theory of Change. Her fieldwork involved semi-structured interviews to determine social market factors that obstructed a transition to sustainable aquaculture practices. After CSP, Safari has been pursuing a Ph.D. in the Emmett Interdisciplinary Program in Environment and Resources (E-IPER) at Stanford University. She is also an alumna of the Blue Pioneers Program.

Watch Safari’s Final Capstone Presentation hereTheory of Change for Sustainable Marine Aquaculture in China

Faculty Advisors:
Don Croll
A. Marm Kilpatrick

Partner Organizations:
Wildlife Conservation Society
Sea to Shore Alliance

Celeshia Guy

Hometown: Belmopan, Belize

Celeshia is a conservation practitioner since 2010, with positions at the Belize Zoo, Belize Bird Rescue, Oceana Belize, and now the acting Program Coordinator at Clearwater Marine Aquarium Research Institute Belize. Celeshia is a Climate Reality Leader and was awarded the Belize Youth in Conservation prize. Celeshia’s conservation platform is Endangered Species Protection, and her focal species is the endangered Antillean manatees.

Through the Coastal Science and Policy Program, Celeshia completed a summer internship with the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission – Marine Mammal Pathobiology Laboratory. During the internship, she participated in live stranding response of manatees and pilot whales; and assisted with necropsies of dead manatees to determine the cause of mortality and better understand the threats to the population. For her one-year capstone project, Celeshia worked alongside her faculty advisors and practitioner partners to create the first model to assess the risk of watercraft collision to the Belize Antillean manatee population. Celeshia presented the findings of her capstone research to government agencies in Belize, and as a result the government is currently in the process of expanding its “no-wake” zone along the entire coastline to reduce the risk of watercraft collisions to manatees in Belize.

Watch Celeshia’s Final Capstone Presentation hereSaving the Endangered Antillean Manatees: Analysis of manatee strandings and risk from watercraft collision in Belize

Faculty Advisors:
Gary Griggs
Borja Reguero

Partner Organizations:
Grenada Environment Division
Natural Capital Project

Andre Joseph-Witzig

Hometown: St. Georges, Grenada

Andre Joseph-Witzig is from the Caribbean spice island of Grenada. He has been closely involved with climate change and coastal zone management on the island, working with international agencies and local government. He has supported the development of policy and legislation, data collection in the coastal zone, and has worked with schools and technical staff on community co-management, beach profiling, and ecosystem-based adaptation, including both coral reef and mangrove restoration projects. Since graduating from the Coastal Science and Policy Master’s Program at UCSC, Andre has conducted a number of environmental consultancies in Grenada, focusing on GIS data collection and on projects conducting both hard and soft coastal adaptation measures. He is also a coordinating lead author on the first National Ecosystem Assessment for Grenada where he is contributing to the chapters on climate resilience, and on scenarios and pathways to a sustainable future. More recently, Andre joined the Eastern Caribbean Office of The Nature Conservancy in the position of Conservation Project Assistant. He hopes to support The Conservancy’s role in ecosystem-based adaptation and climate related projects in the Caribbean. His portfolio currently involves assisting with flood risk mitigation projects in Grenada as well as supporting disaster risk reduction interventions and nature-based solutions throughout the region.

Read about Andre’s Year 2 Capstone:

As part of the CSP program, Andre completed a summer internship with the Central Coast Wetlands Group supporting their work on coastal adaptation for the City of Santa Cruz. For this work he reviewed adaptation strategies, policies, and triggers for pathways to adapt to storms and sea level rise. The work will inform the City’s Resilient Coast Santa Cruz effort. Andre also attended the DroneCamp program hosted by the Informatics and GIS Program of the University of California, Agriculture and Natural Resources division and developed skills in drone monitoring and the use of photogrammetry as a tool to monitor coastal ecosystems.

Over the course of the capstone year Andre was able to collaborate with many partners working on coastal adaptation in both Santa Cruz and Grenada. In Santa Cruz, he assisted with the development of recommended policy updates for the Santa Cruz City Local Coastal Program to address future sea level rise hazards. Using the opportunities provided by the Coastal Science and Policy Program to further his knowledge of remote sensing and GIS, he concentrated his capstone work in Grenada on piloting the monitoring of beaches using drones, and on modelling the effects of climate change on coastal ecosystem services in Grenada, Carriacou and Petite Martinique. For the modeling he partnered closely with the Natural Capital Project to use their tools and benefit from their expertise and guidance.

Andre also worked closely with consultants who developed a marine spatial plan for Grenada and was also able to contribute to a socio-economic coastal vulnerability assessment developed by the Centre for the Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science in the UK which has now been submitted for journal publication.  Andre is aiming for his contributions and future work to assist decision-makers and community groups with sustainable management of the coastal zone in Grenada and throughout the Caribbean region.

Watch Andre’s Final Capstone Presentation here Advancing Coastal Zone Management in Grenada: using ecosystem services and new technologies to inform climate-resilient coastal management in Grenada

Faculty Advisors:
Kristy Kroeker
Don Croll

Partner Organizations:
The Nature Conservancy
Cascade/Pie Ranch

Mali’o Kodis

Hometown: Volcano, Hawaii

Current position: Project Manager for the Climate Corps Fellowship team at the Environmental Defense Fund

Growing up in the rainforests of Hawaii laid the foundation of Mali’o’s passion for conservation science. Throughout high school and college, Mali’o conducted research in a wide variety of environments, from coral reefs to mountain forests. After graduating from Brown University, Mali’o was a Helen Fellow at the American Museum of Natural History for 2 years, where she conducted research on ecological niche modeling and coastal community resilience. During her time at U.C. Santa Cruz, Mali’o explored climate adaptation strategies including regenerative agriculture (with Pie Ranch) and floodplain restoration in urban and rural environments (with The Nature Conservancy). She won “Best Overall” at the U.C. Santa Cruz Graduate Research Symposium for her presentation on the role for conservation organizations in strategic retreat from at-risk areas.

Watch Mali’o’s Graduate Research Symposium presentation here.

Mali’o wrote a journal article (published in April 2021) in the Journal of Environmental Studies and Sciences on her work with The Nature Conservancy. Mali’o is currently a Project Manager for the Climate Corps Fellowship team at the Environmental Defense Fund. She lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Watch Mali’o’s Final Capstone Presentation hereBuilding Climate Resilience on Farms and in Cities

Faculty Advisors:
Anne Kapuscinski
Borja Requero

Partner Organization:
Innogy Consulting

Samruddhi Kothari

Hometown: Mumbai, India

Samruddhi is focusing her talents on mobilizing finance mechanisms to support climate risk analysis and climate action, with a focus on coastal zones. She is currently spearheading the biocredit workstream at Nature Finance, where she plays a crucial role in shaping innovative financial solutions for environmental sustainability. In this capacity, she provides vital support to the CEO, especially in engagements with the International Panel for Biodiversity, a key forum for addressing global biodiversity issues. Her role also extends to managing partnerships and projects with major financial institutions like the Asian Development Bank (ADB) and the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) focused on creating nature based financial solutions. Samruddhi previously worked as a Project Finance Associate at Aspiration supporting project financing and deal structuring for carbon sequestration projects. In the role she helped estimate returns generated from projects and guides decision-making around which projects to invest in. Prior to jioning Aspiration, she worked as a research analyst with Gordian Knot Strategies, a start-up climate financing consultancy. Her primary role involves setting up an impact fund for an endowment. She is also pursuing other projects concerning wildfire risk in California. Samruddhi additionally volunteers with several groups on  financial approaches to climate action. She is volunteering with the Conservation Finance Alliance on building a framework on evaluating sustainable finance mechanisms for marine-focused projects. She also works with Blockchain and the Climate Institute on integrating physical risk analysis for flooding and other recommendations from the Task-Force for Climate-related Financial Disclosures into the real estate sector.

Watch Samruddhi’s Final Capstone Presentation hereRising risk of climate and weather impacts on energy supply infrastructure

Read about Samruddhi’s Year 2 Capstone:

Harnessing the knowledge of business and finance Samruddhi is keen to understand 1) how climate risk impacts businesses and cities and 2) how insurance can support and inform business decisions ahead of these risky events. The insurance industry’s current climate risk strategies focus on short-term time horizons. However, given the unpredictability of climate and weather events the insurance industry is distinctively positioned to foster risk mitigations efforts. The industry is already using its current risk knowledge and level of awareness to make risk-based decisions but is also stimulating the energy and utility industries to adopt long-term decision-making approaches.

Samruddhi was interested in understanding the long-term risk management strategies that could be adopted by businesses in the energy and utility sectors based on the level of protection and affordability of insurance and regulations. Working with a private consulting firm, Samruddhi’s capstone explored actuarial implications of climate events on business decisions and policy regulations, with a special focus on the need for premium readjustments. Her capstone year was divided into 3 phases:

  1. Review current risk-industry analysis methods
  2. Identify forward-looking scenarios that can reflect future risk from hazards such as cyber-attacks, weather-related natural disasters and climate hazards such as sea level rise; and
  3. Review how premiums are set, based on baseline risk, and infer potential premium adjustments in the forward-looking scenarios, (e.g., premium with sea level rise adjusted risk)
Faculty Advisors:
Anne Kapuscinski
Bernie Tershy

Partner Organization:
Fishbio

Biraj Shrestha

Hometown: Hetauda, Nepal

Biraj is an amphibian biologist and wildlife conservation practitioner from Nepal. He has a wide experience in the research, management, and conservation of freshwater species, particularly those with high use-value such as fish and amphibians. Following graduation, he was hired as an Independent Consultant for a USAID project ̶ Linear Infrastructure Safeguards in Asia (LISA). For the LISA project, he helped to assess Nepal’s capacity in adopting and implementing wildlife crossings at major highways, railways, and transmission lines that currently fragment habitats and are contributing to deforestation. In Fall 2022, Biraj will begin a PhD at the University of Texas at Arlington in Quantitative Biology.

Biraj values the strength of community-based conservation and his strategic effort on participatory resource management is put together in a tutorial video about Protecting Amphibians through Community Engagement (PACE), watch it here. Biraj strongly believes that freshwater species are at high risks of extinction and highlights the destruction of freshwater ecosystems around the planet as the most pressing problem of the 21st century.

Watch Biraj’s Final Capstone Presentation here –  Strengthening Community Co-Management of a Mekong River Fish Conservation Zone Network

Read about Biraj’s Year 2 Capstone:

During the CSP summer placement program, Biraj interned with the City of Santa Cruz Water Department as a Watershed Management Intern. In this role, he worked in the Loch Lomond Reservoir, adjacent watersheds, and north coast watersheds. Biraj supported the department by:

  • Preparing a draft plan for invasive species management (American Bullfrog, Canada geese) in collaboration with the City’s team
  • Supporting stream monitoring (gauging, flow measurement, water quality) at multiple sites including Loch Lomond Reservoir, Lower Newell and Upper Newell stream, San Lorenzo Lagoon, and North Coast Flow
  • Assisting ongoing fisheries population research (capture-mark-release-recapture using PIT tags) in designated county streams.

For his capstone, Biraj worked on freshwater biodiversity conservation alongside FISHBIO’s Laos program and program leads from their Santa Cruz headquarters. For his capstone, Biraj worked on the Laos Fish Conservation Zone (FCZ) Network project which was being implemented along the Mekong River. FCZs are no-take fishing areas managed by communities that protect critical fish breeding and nursery habitats as well as limit overharvesting of target species. While there, Biraj learned about FCZ establishment, performance, management, evaluation, and adaptation. Biraj envisions applying some of his Lao-based aquatic resources management experience to Nepal.

Faculty Advisor:
Gary Griggs

Partner Organizations:
Lumina Decision Systems
Nature Services Peru

David Torres

Hometown: Cuzco, Peru

David is now a Watershed Services Analyst at Forest Trends, based in Lima, Peru, where he synthesizes hydrological and economic models in order to generate a clear investment thesis for natural infrastructure projects across the Peruvian Andes aimed at securing water supply (NIWS Project). At the beginning of his career, he spent 4.5 years as Operations Manager at Nature Services Peru, a forest carbon developer and consulting company, where he helped organizations to develop their carbon neutral strategies which covered GHG inventorying and community-based rainforest conservation through Regenera. David holds a BS and a PE in Forest Engineering from Peru’s National Agrarian University, La Molina; and, a MS in Coastal Science & Policy from the University of California, Santa Cruz. David completed a pilot study for the City of Santa Cruz’ Climate Action Program as an Intern Analyst at Lumina Decision Systems while performing a capstone project during his time in California.

Watch David’s Final Capstone Presentation hereDigital interfaces for human interaction around ecosystems/climate data

Faculty Advisor:
Kristy Kroeker
Anne Kapuscinski

Partner Organizations:
Full Cycle Bioplastics

Casey Zweig

Hometown: Malibu, California

Casey currently served as the Head of Technology Deployment at Full Cycle Bioplastics where she brought its bacteria-powered technology to scale in order to disrupt defunct waste management systems and move towards circular, zero-waste solutions. She oversaw the company’s first production facility in Mountain View and the scale-up to the company’s first commercial facilities. Casey has a knack for tackling major environmental issues through creative, impactful programs and building adaptable, high-performing teams. The urgency of the climate crisis motivates Casey to leverage her boots-on-the-ground experience in environmental programs with systems change thinking to create cost-effective, circular solutions. Casey Zweig is a graduate of the Duke University Environmental Science and Policy program and prior to joining the CSP program led environmental programs for the City of Malibu with a strong focus in coastal issues including water quality, waste management, and coastal adaptation. She is adept at building partnerships across sectors, which has proved successful in the award-winning “Keep it Clean, Malibu” storm water campaign, single-use plastic bans, and expansion of the Clean Bay Certified restaurant program. In 2020, Casey was accepted into the Ellen MacArthur Foundation From Linear to Circular Program.

Watch Casey’s Final Capstone Presentation here Innovating Beyond Plastic: The Story of Becoming a Bacteria Farmer and Material Alchemist to Save the Planet

Read about Casey’s Year 2 Capstone

Plastic pollution and climate change are two of the most pressing environmental crises of our time. Current consumption trends and ineffective waste systems pose major threats to our climate, environment, and human health. Concern over plastic pollution is receiving unprecedented attention and support in public spheres as well as more focused effort by public and private sectors to address organic waste and recyclables, particularly in light of China’s decision to minimize importing waste. This comes at a time when waste companies are already struggling to keep their business models profitable and governments and communities are championing climate action planning to mitigate their impact and develop adaptive capacity for a changing future. Casey’s project aimed to change the status quo of waste systems by bringing to market a new technology that sequesters carbon from organic waste, creates a more valuable product from organic waste than only compost, and creates an easily compostable and marine degradable bioplastic that can serve as an alternative to plastic. Full Cycle Bioplastics’ circular economy technology has been proven at a pilot scale followed by the early planning stages for a commercial scale facility.

DESIGNATED EMPHASIS COHORT

UC Santa Cruz began the Designated Emphasis in Coastal Science and Policy in Fall 2019 for PhD students from departments across UC Santa Cruz’s campus. Meet graduates of the Designated Emphasis:

DE Faculty Advisor:

Kristy Kroeker

 

Julia Cheresh, PhD 2023

Hometown: Santa Barbara, California

Link to Dissertation: From Models to Management: Oceanographic Processes Shaping the Spatial Patterns and Progression of Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia in the California Current System

CSP Designated Emphasis Dissertation Chapter: Development of an interactive web-based management tool for ocean acidification and hypoxia in the California Current System

Chapter Abstract: From marine resource managers, scientists, and policy-makers to fishers and aquaculture growers, many communities are confronting the challenges posed by ocean acidification and hypoxia. Along the U.S. West Coast, ocean acidification and hypoxia are progressing rapidly, and many of these communities seek to know where the impacts of OAH will be most severe and when the effects will be felt by specific organisms or ecosystems in general. Traditional channels of communicating scientific findings — namely, peer-reviewed publications and conference proceedings — are often not accessible to the individuals and groups who are responsible for decision making in the face of a changing climate. Web-based tools can allow for the dissemination of scientific information in a user-friendly and cost-free format. Application of these tools range from displaying general scientific communication to providing real-time recommendations and serving as data repositories. To address the gap between research and marine resource management, a web tool for OAH was developed based on an ensemble of dynamically downscaled regional climate projections. A draft of the tool was created and shared with OAH community members from various sectors including ocean observing, research, and management. The tool was then modified based on feedback from OAH community members to make it more relevant to real-world applications. This chapter describes the implementation of the web tool, along with how feedback from OAH community members was incorporated into the tool’s functionality and general lessons learned from the process of developing such a product. 

Julia said, "I found the CSP courses (both core and elective) to be really useful in gaining practical and marketable skills. I really appreciated that the courses used real-world projects and case studies for the basis of our learning, as this afforded the opportunity to learn skills such as facilitating a stakeholder meeting, analyzing a policy, working in an interdisciplinary team, etc. Our coursework in the Ocean Sciences department was much more "traditional" (lectures, exams, papers), so the contrast was very enjoyable and also has helped build out my practical toolkit, which I hope to draw upon in future work. "

Dr. Julia Cheresh is taking some time to travel and hike the Pacific Crest Trail in the spring and summer of 2024. 

Melissa Cronin, PhD 2022

Hometown: North Reading, Massachusetts

Link to Dissertation: Untangling Bycatch: An Interdisciplinary Approach to Measure and Mitigate Shark and Ray Capture in Industrial Tuna Fisheries

CSP Designated Emphasis Dissertation Chapter: Policy without teeth: Policy and transparency gaps for oceanic shark and rays in high seas tuna fisheries

Chapter Abstract: The incidental capture by marine fisheries as bycatch poses a global threat to pelagic sharks and rays. In large, industrialized fisheries that often operate in areas beyond national jurisdiction, at least 23 threatened species of pelagic elasmobranchs are caught as bycatch, representing the majority of megafauna bycatch in tuna fisheries. Here, we investigate 1) the efficacy of the current policies of the five tuna-related Regional Fisheries Management Organizations (tRFMOs) in mitigating elasmobranch bycatch, 2) data needed to better assess the amount and impact of elasmobranch bycatch, and 3) the research necessary for the adoption of new policies. We found that tRFMOs have adopted 34 active policies that address pelagic elasmobranch bycatch. However, most policies (~76%, n=26) are unlikely to avoid or minimize elasmobranch bycatch. Instead, most policies focus on mitigating post-capture mortality via remediation and requiring or encouraging research and data collection. Despite the emphasis on research mandates, we find that the existence of research was not related to policy adoption, suggesting that lack of research has not historically prohibited policymaking. Overall, we suggest that current research and data transparency, though perhaps not necessary for policy adoption, are not sufficient to adequately evaluate the population-level impacts of bycatch on many elasmobranch species in tRFMO-managed fisheries. Given these results, we recommend a precautionary approach that involves reforms in tRFMO voting processes to facilitate the adoption of effective policies such as binding requirements 90 for elasmobranch catch limits, bycatch avoidance, pre-and post-capture handling and release modifications, and protection of areas important to threatened pelagic elasmobranchs.

Current Position: Smith Conservation Research Postdoctoral Fellow, Duke University Nicholas School of the Environment

Sara Gonzalez, PhD 2022

Hometown: Silver Spring, Maryland

Link to Dissertation: Ecological and Evolutionary Drivers of Morphology and Alginate Content in Giant Kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera)

CSP Designated Emphasis Dissertation Chapter: Alginate yield and composition differ in two ecomorphs of giant kelp (Macrocystis)

Chapter Abstract: Variation in alginate composition of mannuronic (M) and guluronic (G) acids in seaweeds has important implications for their applications as gels or emulsifying agents in foods, beverages, pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and industrial products. The relative proportions of M and G building blocks determine the flexibility of the algal tissue and the physical properties of the gel that can be manufactured from the alginate. Giant kelp (Macrocystis pyrifera) is one of the fastest-growing species of macroalgae with up to 45% alginate content by dry weight, making it an excellent candidate for alginate extraction. Giant kelp exists in four distinct morphological forms, termed “ecomorphs.” The two most common ecomorphs, M. “pyrifera”and M. “integrifolia,”grow throughout the temperate west coasts of North and South America with almost no geographic overlap. This study investigated the relationship between morphology, environment, and alginate production in giant kelp. We collected Macrocystis blades from 15 populations: eight populations of M. “pyrifera”and seven populations of M. “integrifolia”along the coast of Chile and central California. Alginates were extracted from 76 individuals across the 15 populations, and their compositions were characterized.Alginates from all populations were M-rich, but G content was significantly higher in M. “integrifolia”individuals compared to M. “pyrifera.”In addition,alginate composition was related to depth and sea surface temperature.Alginate yield did not differ between the two morphs but was related to depth of the kelp. These results suggest distinct applications for alginates from the two different giant kelp ecomorphs, as the M/G ratio is indicative of gelling capacity and gel elasticity. More elastic alginate gels can be used for making textiles and wound dressings while more rigid alginate gels are used in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics, and foods.

Current Position: Postdoctoral Scholar, Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution

Faculty Advisor:

Pete Raimondi

Rachel Pausch, PhD 2023

Hometown: Miami, Florida

Link to Dissertation: Compensatory mitigation and habitat restoration in coastal California

CSP Designated Emphasis Dissertation Chapter: coming soon (embargoed until August 2024)

Current Position: Ecologist at the California Coastal Commission

Karen Tanner, PhD 2020

Bay Area, California

Link to Dissertation: Plant Response to Land Use Change in Two Iconically Stressful Habitats: California’s Desert Solar Fields and Restored Coastal Salt Marshes

Current Position: Research Fellow, University of California, Santa Cruz

Faculty Advisor:
Chris Edwards

Rae Taylor-Burns, PhD 2023

Boston, Massachusetts

Link to Dissertation: A Numerical Modeling Approach to Investigate Opportunity for Nature-based Shorelines in Urban Estuaries

CSP Designated Emphasis Dissertation Chapter title: The value of marsh restoration for flood risk reduction in an urban estuary

Chapter Abstract: The use of nature-based solutions (NBS) for coastal climate adaptation has broad and growing interest, but NBS are rarely assessed with the same rigor as traditional engineering solutions or with future climate change scenarios. These gaps pose challenges for the use of NBS for climate adaptation. Here, we value the flood protection benefits of stakeholder-identified marsh restoration under current and future climate change within San Francisco Bay, and specifically on the shores of San Mateo, the county most vulnerable to future flooding in California. Marsh restoration provides a present value (PV) of $21 million county-wide under current climate conditions and that PV increases to over $100 million with 0.5 m of sea level rise (SLR), and to about $500 million with 1 m of SLR. There are hotspots within the county where marsh restoration delivers the very high benefits for adaptation, which reach $9 million/hectare under likely climate change scenarios. Today’s investments in nature and community resilience can result in increasing payoffs as climate change progresses and risk increases.

Rae said, "I loved Kristy Kroeker's Facilitating Change class and I have used skills and ideas from that class many times since I took it." 

Current Position: Joint postdoc with UCSC Center for Coastal Climate Resilience and the Ocean Risk and Resilience Action Alliance.

WELLS FARGO COASTAL SUSTAINABILITY FELLOWS

Senior Ph.D. students were awarded Wells Fargo Coastal Sustainability Fellowships for 2015-16, 2016-17, and 2017-2018, paving the way for the kind of work graduate students in the Coastal Science and Policy Program produce.

Abe Borker

PhD Candidate, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Website: neverstopnerding.com

Sarah Beganskas

Ph.D Candidate, Earth and Planetary Sciences Department
Website: http://sarahbeganskas.wix.com/home

Zachary Caple

PhD Candidate, Cultural Anthropology

Cynthia Carrion

PhD Candidate, Ocean Sciences

Hamutahl Cohen

Ph.D Candidate, Environmental Studies
Website: hamutahlc.sites.ucsc.edu/

Melissa Cronin

PhD Student, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Ana Martínez Fernández

Ph.D Candidate, Earth and Planetary Sciences Department

Christie Hegermiller, PhD

Ocean Sciences
Website: coastalchristie.weebly.com/

Karla Knudson, PhD

Earth & Planetary Sciences

Kate Melanson

Ph.D Candidate, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Website: katemelansonresearch.wordpress.com/

Angela Quiros

Ph.D, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

James Shope, PhD

Earth & Planetary Sciences

Sarah Skikne

PhD Candidate, Environmental Studies

Dena Spatz

Ph.D, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Conservation Biologist, Island Conservation

Bronwen Stanford

PhD Candidate, Environmental Studies

Rachel Zuercher

Ph.D Candidate, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Website: rachelzuercher.com

Pidgeon Point Lighthouse, Pescadero California