Celebrating Endangered Species Day!

Last Friday was a special event in the Office of Protected Resources as we celebrated the nation’s annual Endangered Species Day.  Led by our hard-working outreach coordinator, six staff escaped cubeland to spend the day talking with the public at the U.S. Botanical Gardens.  We were not alone in this effort, with countless government agencies and nonprofit organizations lining the garden paths with informational booths, artifacts, posters, and giveaways.  

Children were excited to hold our large sperm whale teeth and fur seal pelts.  We showed inquisitive visitors the orca vertebra and let them spin the endangered species wheel to learn more about just a few of the 60+ marine species that fall within NOAA jurisdiction for conservation and management measures.  Our most popular item was without a doubt the amazing 8-foot long, spiraling narwal tooth.  We used this as a tool to inspire curiosity among children and adults and to talk about this mysterious arctic Unicorn of the Sea.  (I should of course mention that the NOAA Office of Law Enforcement “Fish Police” originally confiscated the illegally obtained items that are now part of the agency museum collection).  

In addition to these learning tools, I showed visitors about perhaps our most odd and imposing display: the TED.   I introduced children to “William the HawksBill” and told them to cheer the turtle on as it bravely navigated the shrimp trawl net.  I then showed them how William the turtle could easily escape the net through the Turtle Excluder Device.  Whether it was unsuspecting adults, informed youth, or bright-eyed school kids, everyone loved actually seeing the TED in action.  

Before you see it, a technological solution such as this remains abstract – something you have to take on faith.  Having not actually seen a real TED myself, I was reminded of the importance of tangible outreach tools for communicating innovation that people are often hesitant to accept.  Lucky for turtles, many fishers have embraced TEDs as a way of improving the efficiency of their catch.  As a final plug for fisheries management, I pointed everyone toward our beautifully illustrated book A Good Catch and then sent them on their way to learn about all of the other endangered animal and plant species that exist in the prairies, forests, and coastal areas of the country.

Events such as these took place all around the country.  What did you do to celebrate Endangered Species Day? 

Blue Vision Summit: National Ocean Policy and More!

Day two of the Blue Vision Summit was filled with lively conversations surrounding the National Ocean Policy, Spatial Planning, the role of the media and art in conservation and sustainability initiatives.  As a biased and previously informed observer, I was still largely impressed with the first panel addressing the National Ocean Policy.  While implementing this new policy is an extensive, complex, and long-term effort, the participants succinctly distilled the prominent goals and misconceptions about this long-anticipated policy and its most notorious objective: coastal and marine spatial planning (CMSP).  Senator Whitehouse defined the effort as simply “planning with all stakeholders present in order to align existing regulations that will minimize resource use conflicts.”  We learned about the early successes in Rhode Island, Massachusetts, and California, and of industry firms that have cut costs by consulting integrated maps that depict preexisting overlapping uses.  One message that I walked away with was the importance of communicating that healthy oceans are integral to maintaining economically robust coastal communities. 

Photo by Brian Skerry

With this conversation setting the stage for the rest of the morning, we then appropriately heard from the community of people conveying our marine issues to the public: the media.  They helped us think about how in the world’s oceans we’re going to garner support for such an abstract idea as CMSP.  There is barely enough resources and concern to cover the most tangible and charismatic of creatures, leaving the rest of our environmental problems scraping up the crumbs of public and congressional interest.  Despite this handicap, our panelists were hopeful.  An NBC reporter, the curator of Google Earth/Ocean, and the producer of The Cove all said that the best thing we (as scientists, managers, and advocates) can do for the oceans is simply to learn how to tell a good story.  

Photo by Brian Skerry

As if taking this recommendation to heart, panelists told us their stories throughout the afternoon.  We heard from one young woman with the Plastic Pollution Coalition who began creating artwork from plastic shopping bags and took this medium into inner city schools where she now teaches children about the ocean while they create sea creatures from garbage.  Brian Skerry, notable National Geographic Society photojournalist, told us about his underwater adventures that result in beautiful images of schooling fish that can be contrasted with his disturbing portrayal of marine injustices such as fishing entanglements and pollution.  Finally, chef Barton Seaver impressed everyone in the room with his charisma, ease, and most of all his extensive knowledge of regional fisheries management problems and the challenge of sustainable seafood sourcing.  All of these stories made me realize that I still have a long way to go in honing my own ability to tell meaningful stories about the ocean.  It’s in that spirit that I ask - what’s your ocean story?

Blue Vision Summit: Perspectives from the Gulf

On the first day of the Blue Vision Summit, sea grant fellows heard many presentations providing environmental, socioeconomic, and regulatory perspectives on the Gulf of Mexico, one year after the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.  Three things were made clear: First, that offshore oil and gas development will always be extremely complex; second, while this complexity may slow regulatory action, it does not erode the resolve of the people involved; and third, that some of the most divisive issues that make oil and gas so complicated will be the platforms for finding future solutions. 

It is no secret that the energy economy is a big deal these days.  So big, in fact, that I will not attempt articulating its importance, intricacies, and dilemmas.  However, I will argue that the fundamental reason that oil and gas is so controversial is because of its many entrenched, passionate, and obligatory stakeholders.  Industry, conservation organizations, federal regulators, resource managers, international politicians, and global economies have a lot to gain (or lose) in having a “seat at the table” in discussing development, production, and spill response.  There is also a large human component of all this.  Whether it is in the Gulf of Mexico or the Gulf of Alaska, there will always be livelihoods, precious ecosystems, and economic interests at stake. 

 

With these complicated and overlapping interests in mind, today’s presentations proved how many people are tackling energy issues from all angles.  We heard from: a film producer who will be launching a long-term campaign that will remind us of our love for the oceans through IMAX films; congressional committee staffers on how to demonstrate the link between nonextractive use values and jobs; and the future of renewable energy.  Panelists explained some of the challenges with a growing human population and the difficulties of bipartisan congressional attitudes, but also showed hope for future regulations and realigning economic incentives.   

All of these people working so hard to find solutions for controversial energy issues will have to think outside the box and find common ground with unlikely partnerships.  This will not be easy when touching on sensitive issues such as human safety, livelihoods, endangered species, gas prices, and the uncertainty surrounding the feasibility of renewable energy.  One of the biggest difficulties in moving forward is redirecting people’s fixation with past injustices to instead focus on overcoming the challenges ahead.  This was evident in the long line of people who stood behind the microphone to take their turn in hurling questions at the panelists reviewing last year’s oil response efforts.  All in all, a full day of discussions and new friends.

After a first great day, we are all eager to see what tomorrow’s presentations and panels will hold!

Blue Vision Summit: Celebration of the Seas

This Friday marked the beginning of the third annual Blue Vision Summit, a gathering of diverse marine conservation leaders from a variety disciplines – academia, art, music, policy, management, science, and education.  This event was kicked off in style, with ocean-themed films, bioluminescence-inspired dancers, a silent auction, and organic local food, including cookies decorated as crabs, seahorses, and dolphins!  Excitement and cheer filled the historic Carnegie Institute of Science as dedicated professionals celebrated the start of this much-anticipated weekend event.   Many Knauss fellows (and their guests) were in attendance, enjoying the delicious food and good company throughout the evening. 

The Blue Vision Summit and its Celebration of the Seas is spearheaded by Sylvia Earle’s Blue Frontier Campaign, sponsored mainly by emerging marine nonprofit top-dogs Center for Ocean Solutions, One World One Ocean, Ocean Foundation, and Mission Blue, to name a few.  The effort these organizations are making to think outside the normal bounds of advocacy, resource management, science, and policy in order to raise awareness about ocean issues is inspiring. 

One example of this inspiration came from Cousteau’s granddaughter, Celine.  She has produced what I would call (for lack of an appropriate term) an “artful experience” entitled Ocean Inspiration, where viewers watch subtle underwater footage of schooling fish over coral reefs and listen to recordings of people expressing their appreciation for the ocean, all enhanced by a live music ensemble.  The images, voices, and instruments of the piece all repeatedly builded up and subsided like the ocean itself, creating a very moving experience.  This production was just one facet of another lovely evening with the marine conservation community in D.C.

Knauss Brown Bag May 19

What's a colonial ascidian? Ask Jamie!

The second installment of the Knauss Brown Bag Seminar Series will be this Thursday. Our speakers will be Jamie - on habitat connectivity in shallow hard-bottom systems; and Joe - on wind-wave modeling at the air/water interface and CO2 flux over Lake Michigan. 

Sounds complicated...but I'm sure these guys will explain everything! 

Please try to make it to the NOAA Central Library at noon on May 19 to support your fellow fellows, or contact the BB committee for remote access information.

What do waves have to do with climate change? Ask Joe!

International Culinary Tour of DC: India and Ethiopia

Chicken tikka, garlic naan & veggie curry

Christina and I cooked up a plan to sample the amazing international flavors DC has to offer. We started with Indian at The White Tiger on the Hill. It was a beautiful Monday evening so we sat out in their courtyard. The meal was really great (see photo!) and they have a lot to choose from. If you like spicy food you will not be let down. I'm a bit of a wuss so I'm partial to the garlic naan and also really enjoyed their masala chai (tea) which has lots of cardamom. Our only complaint was the extremely slow to sometimes non-existent service, so if you decide to give them a try be sure you're not in a hurry. The menu was just a little on the pricey side but we both had another meal in leftovers - fellows know how to stretch a buck!

This week a group of us hit up Ethiopic on H St. for an Ethiopian dinner. If you haven't tried Ethiopian before you should! It's a very 'hands-on' meal served on large shared platters and eaten by scooping up with a flatbread called injera. Not everyone was a fan of injera, which has a yeasty almost sourdough flavor, but everyone agreed the vegetable sampler and chicken/beef platter were delicious. There were spicy and non-spicy options to suit everyone's palate (the dark brown ones are spicy!). Ethiopic also has a variety of Ethiopian beers and a honey wine which complement the meal really well.

What should we try next??

12 Questions: Becky Blanchard

1. Where were you before beginning Knauss, and what were you doing there? 

Before the Knauss, I was at the University of Florida in Gainesville, where I’m finishing my PhD in anthropology.  In the fall, I got to teach one of our department’s main undergraduate classes, Introduction to Cultural Anthropology.  I had 140 students, and it was a blast.  The previous term I was the TA for the 300-student Human Sexuality and Culture class, so, fortunately, that disabused me of any squeamishness about public speaking.

2. What drew you to the position you chose?

I was eager to work on international issues and to “scale up” from my dissertation research, which is on oyster harvesters in Florida’s Apalachicola Bay and their role in environmental governance.  And since I’m interested in governance more broadly, the Department of State is a great fit.

3. How will you use your background in your new office?

Anthropology tends to be very grounded and empirical, so it helps me to keep in mind that policy impacts real people and places.  Ethnography is also a great tool when I enter a new organization and need to learn the actors and issues (and acronyms!).  I have to be careful, though, because after I tell people that, they tend to get nervous whenever they see me scribbling in my notepad.

Entrance to Apalachicola Bay, FL.

4. What has been the biggest change for you since starting the fellowship?

Coming from writing the dissertation, I’ve had to switch from the mode of qualitative research – in which you invest significant time contemplating problems, deliberating approaches, and gathering and evaluating evidence – to working on tight deadlines and accepting that we must act on information that is inherently incomplete.

5. What have you found to be your most essential piece of 'work attire'?

Probably the badge!  But I definitely wear more suits and less goretex than in previous jobs.

6. Where is your favorite spot on Earth?

I worked on salmon issues before grad school.  Maybe I’m salmon-like in that even though I’ve traveled to amazing places around the world, I am always happy to return to the Pacific Northwest where I grew up.  There’s a certain appreciation in the Northwest for the way that rivers connect people and places, from the mountains to the ocean, and it opens possibilities for how we think about our communities and our responsibilities to one another and to the world we inhabit. 

That got a little serious, so I’ll add three fun factoids:  (1) there used to be nine-foot sabertooth salmon, (2) the return of salmon to their natal streams may contribute up to ¼ of nitrogen in riparian trees and shrubs, and (3) a recent study suggests that the marine-source nitrogen contributed by salmon carcasses may be the reason for some of the Northwest’s great wines.  I used to call such factoids “cocktail party trivia,” but my students would laugh, either because cocktail parties are for old fogeys or because they are embarrassed that this is what I would talk about at parties.

7. What's at the top of your recommended reading list for someone wanting to explore a career in your field?

There is so much fantastic writing in fisheries and maritime anthropology!  One of the classics is James Acheson’s Lobster Gangs of Maine.  A more recent ethnography I’d recommend is Christine Walley’s Rough Waters, about the establishment of a marine protected area off Mafia Island, Tanzania.

8. Personal favorite book?

This is like asking someone to choose a favorite child….  I’ll just say that my most recent non-academic read was Joan Didion’s Where I Was From.

9. What are your hobbies?

I love being outside:  hiking, camping, running, biking, kayaking, gardening.  I think I have the unfortunate distinction of being the only Knauss Fellow to have never been SCUBA diving, and I am eager to change that!

10. What would you be doing if you hadn't gone into your field?

I started college as a geology major, so if I hadn’t been distracted by the people, I would probably be collecting rocks.  My fantasy job, though, would be as a correspondent for This American Life.

11. Who is your favorite historical scientist and why?

Being the first person in my family to pursue a science career, I have really benefited from opportunities to interact with “real” scientists.  So, my answer is not “historical” unless you count “legend-in-her-own-time” status!  I’m fortunate to have had the support of many amazing women in science.  One who has been an inspiration for me over the years is Dr. Amanda Stronza, currently a Co-PI on the applied biodiversity IGERT at Texas A&M.  She sent me to the Peruvian Amazon for a summer on my first research project.  She is very attentive to issues of community participation and empowerment in research and conservation.  Moreover, she’s a tremendous person, and her success provides a model for me and other students she has worked with in terms of building a satisfying career and reaching out to younger scholars.  Mentoring is especially important in encouraging first-generation college students to pursue science.  I heard that Lauren Land started a chapter of EnvironMentors at LSU, and I think that’s fantastic.

12. Any idea what you're doing next year?

I’ll defend my PhD in January, and will be looking at both policy and academic jobs.  My husband is an artist and also on the academic job market, so that makes planning our next move both challenging and exciting!