“The message of exclusion has always been that it is not ours, not for us. Not the good jobs, not the best neighborhoods, not the good schools, not the finer things in life.
Doing, being — in nature and in all manner of activities — contradicts the message. Being in nature reminds us that, yes, this is ours too. We belong here. We need to be here.”
Eddy L. Harris
We invite you join us on October 14 for a special film screening of the documentary River to the Heart (105m), followed by a conversation with the director, Eddy Harris, author of Mississippi Solo.
This documentary charts Eddy’s adventures as a lone Black man canoeing 2,318 miles down the entirety of the Mississippi River and is not available for viewing on traditional platforms.
The goal of this event is to initiate conversation about cultural connections to water and nature, the importance of diverse voices and values in environmental work, and what it means to push our limits of physical and emotional abilities while creating space for reflection and healing.
Additionally, we’re pleased to announce that the conversation will be facilitated by Mr. Chukundi Salisbury, Sustainability and Environmental Engagement Manager at the City of Seattle, founder of the Youth Green Corps, and creator of the children’s book series The Adventures of Lil Bigfella.
Jacqueline Padilla-Gamiño, along with researchers from NOAA’s Northwest Fisheries Science Center and Baywater Shellfish Farms, will examine the impacts of stressors on shellfish as part of a new project funded by the NOAA Sea Grant and the Ocean Acidification Program.
Crassostrea gigas (Pacific Oysters). Unsplash
Project description
Ocean warming, acidification, and hypoxia are increasing threats in the world’s coastal waters, with potentially severe consequences for marine organisms and ocean economies. Waters in the Northeast Pacific have naturally low pH values, making this region particularly vulnerable to the effects of acidification. While the Pacific Northwest region is a leading producer of farmed shellfish in the US, summer mortalities of Pacific oysters Crassostrea gigas are a growing concern for the shellfish industry. There is also an increasing concern that triploid (i.e., seedless) oysters are more sensitive to summer mortality events; this is problematic because in this region, triploids are preferred over diploids since triploids grow faster and diploids are less marketable during their summer spawning season. Previous work suggests that oyster mortalities are the result of stress associated with multiple stressors. However, not much is known about the mechanisms related to this mortality and the extent to which ploidy (number of chromosome copies) influences physiological tolerance. Researchers at the University of Washington and the Northwest Fisheries Science Center, and shellfish growers from Baywater Shellfish will collaborate to integrate oceanographic measurements, field work, and laboratory experiments to examine the physiological tolerance and survival of diploid and triploid oysters under multiple stressors. The natural variability of pH, temperature, and dissolved oxygen will be monitored on commercial farms and the influences of these conditions on the survival, gametogenesis and physiology of the farms’ diploid and triploid oysters will be examined. The effects of pH, temperature, and dissolved oxygen on oyster performance will also be assessed in a controlled, laboratory setting. Finally, a decision tool for growers will be developed by combining economic information with the data collected from the farm and laboratory experiments. This simple-to-use planning tool will help Puget Sound shellfish growers balance the risks and benefits of planting triploid oysters (that are marketable in summer) against the potentially higher mortality of triploids compared to diploids as a function of the multi-stressor environment.
Thursday, September 30, 2–5pm at the lawn next to FSH; livestream will end before 4pm
This year, the Kickoff will be a hybrid affair, with socially-distanced outdoor activities (and socializing, and food) at the FSH building and a live Zoom webinar for folks who can’t or prefer not to attend in person. For information on when/where to show up and how to register for the remote event, check out the attached poster.
Livestream registration: tinyurl.com/safskickoff (no registration required for in-person event)
Accessibility: Contact Michael Martínez (mcfm@uw.edu) if you need something not listed here
In person: seating, wheelchair accessible
Remote: Live captions (in English)
COVID precautions:
Proof of vaccination required
Masks required (except when eating)
Only designated volunteers will serve food
Hand sanitizer provided
If you are experiencing COVID-19 symptoms or are unvaccinated, stay home and join the livestream
What to expect:
Welcome from the SAFS director
Information from student organizations
Food and drinks
Trivia and prizes!
If you have any questions or concerns, please contact Michael Martínez (mcfm@uw.edu) or Amy Fox (amyfox@uw.edu). We are excited to see you there!
Jacqueline Padilla-Gamiño. Dennis Wise/University of Washington
SAFS Assistant Professor Jacqueline Padilla-Gamiño was recently named the recipient of a National Science Foundation (NSF) CAREER award. This prestigious award will support Padilla-Gamiño’s research to explore how changing oceans and plastic pollution will impact coral reef ecosystems; it will also support continued education and outreach initiatives with citizens, teachers, and grade school students in Hawaii.
“I am humbled and honored to receive the NSF CAREER award,” said Padilla-Gamiño. “It’s a unique opportunity to integrate long-term collaborations with school teachers and students into my research program, and it’s the link between the two that I am particularly excited about.”
The NSF selects award recipients who are faculty members at the start of their careers with the potential to serve as academic role models in research and education and to lead advances in the mission of their department or organization. The intent of the NSF CAREER program is to provide stable support that enables awardees to develop their careers not only as outstanding researchers, but also as educators demonstrating commitment to teaching, learning, and dissemination of knowledge.
Current models predict that more than 75% of coral reefs will experience annual severe bleaching events before 2070 due to rising temperatures. Coupled with the approximately 8 million tons of plastic entering the ocean each year (which is expected to increase 10-fold by 2025), the health of the world’s reefs are of great concern. Padilla-Gamiño’s CAREER research will identify and quantify the presence of microplastics (small pieces of plastic, less than 5 mm in length) in coral reefs, and examine the effects of thermal stress and microplastic exposure in coral performance. Part of this research also involves determining which species of coral are consuming microplastics and if they are actively targeting them. Studies on other marine organisms show that consumption of microplastics directly impacts the endocrine system and can have effects on reproduction and growth.
The Hawaiian version of Kupe and the Corals
Padilla-Gamiño’s CAREER award will also provide an opportunity to engage and educate the broader scientific and non-scientific communities about the significance of climate change and plastic pollution and the connectedness between the two. Previous NSF support helped Padilla-Gamiño develop coral reef education workshops for K–12 teachers in Hawaii, where she used her widely circulated children’s book, Kupe and the Corals, as an introductory lesson to coral reefs. In addition to English, the book has been translated into Hawaiian, French, Spanish, Paumotu and Tahitian. This has allowed teachers to amplify the message and connect with students and parents from diverse backgrounds. Elementary school teachers from Hawaiian immersion programs were particularly excited to work with Padilla-Gamiño who, as Latina, serves as a role model for underrepresented groups in science.
“In this project, we will work with middle school teachers and their students to implement a coral/climate change lesson plan and develop place-based science education activities centered around plastic pollution,” said Padilla-Gamiño. “We have chosen to work with this group of students because research has shown that middle school is the time when girls and minority students start to lose confidence in their abilities to do math and science.”
Teachers and students in Hawaii will work together with Padilla-Gamiño’s research team to conduct plastic collections and experiments in their communities. One of the goals of the research is to create an advanced catalogue of microplastics found in the marine environment and provide an important baseline for Hawaiian reefs. Padilla-Gamiño describes the education program and citizen science initiatives as part of a larger, long-lasting relationship with teachers in Hawaii. The team will work closely with the He’eia National Estuarine Research Reserve, which integrates traditional knowledge and contemporary science and helps communities to address issues such as climate change, habitat restoration, and water quality in Hawaii.
Lisa and Jim Seeb, research professors at SAFS for 13 years, retired at the end of September. Their links to the School, however, stretch far back—both were graduate students in the (then) School of Fisheries (Lisa, PhD 1986 [Gunderson]; Jim PhD 1987) before establishing the first fisheries genetics laboratory in Alaska. After 16 years with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (AD-F&G), they were lured to SAFS in 2007 and have been here ever since. Lisa and Jim have made major contributions to population genetic methods and their application to Pacific salmonids. Their work has improved the conservation and use of these iconic species.
Jim and Lisa Seeb in Chile in 2015
What brought you to fisheries science and SAFS?
Jim: I left the US Air Force in 1974 with a BS in chemistry, four years of GI Bill, and no expectation that my degree would lead to a career. My time in the College of Fisheries (COF) involved informally taking a few classes and diving for specimens to add to Dr. Welander’s collection. I met a very gracious Bill Hershberger, a fairly new assistant professor with little activity in his genetics lab at the time. (Genetics was a boutique field in the COF then.) Hersh gave me a key to his lab and unfettered access to dabble with his equipment and chemicals (for that I remain in awe and will always be grateful). In the 1970s, there was little COF funding available for graduate study, especially in genetics, but I took a class offered by Affiliate Professor Fred Utter, who had access to outside agency funds to promote genetic studies. Fred sponsored me as an MS student and remains a mentor to this day.
Lisa: Becoming a UW graduate student was the result of a circuitous and unlikely journey. After graduation from UC Berkeley, I was urged to pursue graduate school in zoology. I headed to the University of Montana for an MS, quickly becoming interested in population genetics using a frog species as a model. I worked with Fred Allendorf, a UW graduate, who introduced me to Fred Utter and correctly pointed out that there were many more jobs for fish than frog geneticists. After working for a year as Jim’s technician, I applied to the UW and was accepted as a NMFS-funded PhD student to study rockfish with Don Gunderson. Throughout graduate school, I was fortunate to have supportive mentors to help navigate this unlikely journey and provide a welcoming environment for, what was then, an almost exclusively male-dominated profession.
Why the change from ADF&G to SAFS?
Lisa and I arrived at the ADF&G in 1990 with no startup and a small budget. Alaskans recognized the potential of genetics to add to their toolkit for conservation biology, which is rooted in the State constitution. We built a robust program with 20 full-time scientists and technicians who used genomic technologies to monitor and conserve populations of exploited salmonids. Data sampled by the North Pacific Anadromous Fish Commission (NPAFC) parties provided a base to both develop migration models and to discriminate the origins of fish intercepted in fisheries prosecuted on the high seas.
The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation (GBMF) scouted our program in 2006, suggesting a grant to extend our novel genetics approaches to Asian nations that were a focus of their salmon conservation efforts. While interesting, the GBMF idea was not feasible for us in an agency setting. Ray Hilborn envisioned incorporating our genetics program into the Alaska Salmon Program (ASP) and introduced us to SAFS and Dean Nowell of the College of Ocean and Fishery Science. We were thrilled to leave the confines of a strict agency mission, work within the globally renowned ASP, and mentor graduate students and post-docs who would provide a legacy that we would otherwise not achieve.
What were some of the most rewarding aspects of your time at SAFS?
Working with the very talented students, post-docs, and faculty. Our seed funding enabled us to host workshops, attract amazing students, and explore the complexities of genome duplication in salmonids—things that we could not do before. Our lab members paved the way into high-throughput DNA sequencing and applied bioinformatics for fisheries that serve as a model for many conservation genetics labs today.
What is your impression of the legacy of SAFS in terms of population genetics in aquatic systems?
One only needs to look at the mentoring tree to trace the influence of SAFS in population genetics of salmonids. Branches lead through NWFSC and SAFS researchers, beginning with Fred Utter, Bill Hershberger, and Paul Bentzen, and continuing through Kerry Naish, Lorenz Hauser, Steven Roberts, and our lab. Today, many students worldwide can trace the link to SAFS through their mentors or earlier generations of mentors.
Jim Seeb at Kobuk River in 1991
Lisa at Kobuk River Alaska in 1991
Describe some projects that had the largest impact.
A peripheral project that had a transformational impact 30 years ago was one of the first wildlife applications of forensic genetics. In January 1989, ADF&G contacted us after they confiscated a boatload of red king crab allegedly taken during a time/area closure. Our analysis of the confiscated samples showed that they could not have originated from near Adak Island, the only area open to fishing. Based on these data, the skipper agreed to pay the state $565,000—still the largest fine for fishing violations in Alaska. It is difficult to identify individual projects, but two themes stand out. During the 1990s and early 2000s, there was some stagnation in the use of genetic technology by natural resource management agencies. In 2001, we sought to incorporate more modern techniques developed in the two human genome projects to provide population genetic information more efficiently and accurately, and by 2005, a series of papers began emerging from our lab that detailed the ”new” SNP technologies for salmonids. The second theme of projects emerged directly from our GBMF opportunity at SAFS. Students and post-docs in our lab, working on commercially important salmonids, constructed a series of high-density genome maps in an effort to identify adaptively important genes; these genome maps are being used to clarify the complexity of chromosome structure and of the duplicated salmonid genomes. Special recognition goes to Carita Pascal who followed us on our technological and geographic journey from Alaska to Seattle and helped many students and post-docs throughout the salmonid community overcome innumerable lab and bioinformatic challenges.
What’s next?
During our first retirement year, we planned to complete projects and collaborate on a few new ones, visit colleagues in Alaska and Chile, cruise with our boat, and become better photographers and fishers. Obviously, life has changed and travel postponed. We continue working on local and international scientific panels and existing and new collaborations. We remain optimistic that we can take our boat to northern British Columbia and Alaska in the future. As always, we look forward to following rapidly emerging advancements in salmonid genomics.
In July, Professor John Horne eagerly returned to the field after more than a year of pandemic-related delays. As part of a multi-institutional science team, John set sail aboard the R/V Point Sur from Gulfport, Mississippi, testing new technologies to study deeper waters of the Gulf of Mexico in more detail. This voyage was also the first opportunity for John and his team to deploy the new glider technology they have been developing.
The glider John’s team deployed was programmed to descend and ascend in the water column where an onboard echosounder was used to measure densities and sizes of macroscopic animals. Advances in glider technology have allowed for the availability of this data in what John calls “glider time” (as opposed to real-time), represented by when the glider surfaces and connects with a satellite to transmit the observed data. Previously, the volume and cost to transmit data over satellite have limited what data gliders can transmit from field measurements.
“The challenge was how do you compress the data or do something else.”
This problem inspired John and his team to develop the glider’s first “acoustic brain,” an additional small computer integrated into the sensor package.
“I took a suite of metrics that I developed for monitoring the distribution and density of water-column biology at an ocean observatory and for marine renewable energy sites and thought it could be used to solve the data crunch problem,” John said. “The small onboard computer processes the raw acoustic data to produce a suite of descriptors that characterize the distribution of biomass in the water column and transmits these descriptors to the pilots and scientists who deployed the glider.”
An additional step developed by colleagues at the University of South Florida indexes backscatter data using color, which is then used to create a low-resolution echogram. Glider operators are now able to see two things: an echogram picture that you wouldn’t get from the indices alone, plus a set of metrics, called Echometics, transmitted through the satellite in glider time.
John explains that the volume of the Echometric values and the coarse echogram are about 40 times less than the raw data alone and provides the team with even more information as they now have a more complete view of what the gilder sees while deployed. Operators can now alter the sampling path of the glider in response to something they see or because they want to investigate an area in more detail.
John believes the value of this new glider technology will become even more apparent by pairing it with other emerging technologies. A parallel experiment aboard the R/V Point Sur, executed by the National Geographic Exploration Technology Lab, tested a network of underwater driftcams. These stereo and video cameras are encased in waterproof housings and can be controlled through an underwater acoustic modem to visually monitor different depths. Acoustic information collected by the glider, as well as instruments aboard the R/V Point Sur and an at depth CTD, can all be relayed to the driftcams.
“The idea is that we take the acoustic data from the glider to get the distribution and density of a patch of animals, and then use the driftcams to identify the constituents,” said John. “We could see where the layers are from the acoustics, and then we could direct the driftcams where to go to take the images.”
Overall, the teams were able to successfully integrate these technologies in the field for the first time, and they are excited about the preliminary results. The ambitious next step for John and his collaborators is “autonomous adaptive sampling” or having the glider make its own decisions in real-time while on deployment.
“Imagine surveying an area and you see a very large patch that you want to investigate,” said John. “The glider’s ‘acoustic brain’ can make a decision whether or not to investigate that patch, identify patches if they exceed a certain threshold, or use logic steps to alter its mission to go sample a patch and determine its boundaries. When finished, the glider goes on its way and resumes its original path.”
Learn more about the interdisciplinary team aboard the R/V Point Sur and its various research goals.
John plans to travel to Alaska in September to conduct the initial gear testing of a second glider. Its first mission will be to look at prey fields and distribution of salmon in the Gulf of Alaska in conjunction with the International Year of the Salmon cruise, which is scheduled for February of 2022.
SAFS welcomes its first Diversity Specialist, Michael Martínez. The SAFS Diversity Specialist will fill a key role in the School’s ongoing efforts to become an equitable, inclusive, and welcoming academic and professional institution for students, staff, faculty, and colleagues. Michael comes to SAFS by way of the Northwest School, where they were a Residential Life Coordinator who worked to create a culture of inclusion and equity among students and faculty from different backgrounds.
How do you interpret the position of Diversity Specialist here at SAFS?
I consider my primary role to be one of support for folks at SAFS who are marginalized or underrepresented. Support takes a lot of different forms: increasing access, building community, holding space, repairing harm, etc. I am also here to support folks with more power and privilege to learn about and process their own experiences with systems of oppression. Finally, a big part of this position is improving systems to prevent future inequity, which is where I see the most room for meaningful change. I am also helping to create/revise School policies to be more equitable and inclusive, educate/train people on issues related to DEI, and assist folks who are trying to increase DEI in their work. I’m happy to help brainstorm, provide feedback on ideas, and explore solutions to issues of inequity. If it’s even remotely DEI related, come talk to me!
What inspired you to become an educator?
I’ve always enjoyed helping people, and I’m pretty good at explaining things to folks, so teaching felt like the logical choice. I initially taught high school English because I saw reading, discussion, and writing as great ways to teach about structural inequality, build empathy, and inspire students to get involved in activism. It quickly became clear that classroom teaching was not the best place for me, but I still enjoyed working with young folks, which is when I transitioned to residential life. When I was working at the Northwest School, I was encouraged to participate in other aspects of the school community and was able to find ways to educate students and staff about DEI issues. I think the field of education has the greatest room to make social change and improve people’s lives.
When organizing for change gets challenging, how do you reconnect to a sense of purpose?
I have a very strong internal drive for justice. It’s incredibly difficult for me to see or hear about some kind of injustice or unfairness or mistreatment and just… not respond. Like, people are hurting! This isn’t right! Let’s do something! I don’t always know what to do, but I’m always learning from others who are more knowledgeable and have more experience. You can’t do this work alone. I stay connected to people I care about who are involved in the ongoing struggle for social justice. When things get hard, I remind myself: everyone deserves love, care, safety, and dignity; change is necessary and possible; I have the ability to do something. As long as I have the ability to take any action, however small, toward advancing equity and justice, I feel it is my moral imperative to act.
Michael with students in the dorms at the Northwest School
What are some of the differences you’ve noticed so far going from working with high school students to a more age-diverse population?
The biggest thing that’s changed for me is not being in a caretaking role anymore. I expect I won’t be quite as hands-on with mental health and homework help, and I definitely won’t be taking anyone to the doctor! I did a lot of DEI work with teachers, administrators, and other staff at the Northwest School, so quite a bit feels familiar. There is much more structure here than at my old job, though!
When we go back to in-person learning, what do you look forward to the most?
Just seeing people in person again will be so nice! I miss having social interactions that happen organically and aren’t through a screen.
Outside of work, what activities give you joy?
I love messing around with plants. A few years ago, I started propagating succulents from leaves, so I’ve got a pretty wild indoor plant situation. My roommate and I are really into improving our garden, so we’ve got herbs and vegetables in the back, and we’re putting in native plants in the front. I also enjoy going for long walks, either alone or with friends, and spending time in/on/around large bodies of water. Mostly, though, I’m an indoor person. I love reading, especially speculative fiction and graphic novels, baking, playing games, crafting, and listening to podcasts. Oh, and it brings me joy to interact with animals, especially my roommate’s dog, Bean.
Michael’s roommate’s dog Bean makes a great co-worker while working from home
Do you have any fun stories from your previous position as Residential Life Coordinator at the Northwest School that you would like to share?
Most of my stories from the Northwest School dorm revolve around student shenanigans. A few years ago, some girls created a genuinely terrifying “haunted house” in their dorm room, complete with bloody handprints and a floating severed head. They were disappointed that no one had come to their room, so I went around and convinced other students to go knock on their door. They ended up scaring a lot of kids. It was great. I’ve got some good pictures of a washing machine mishap that I can’t do justice to in writing (come ask me about it!). Overall, though, my best memories are from the small ways that I hung out with students every day—playing card games, joking around and teasing each other, listening to the kids gossip, and chatting about their lives and their developing understanding of the world.
Capstone research projects provide an exciting opportunity for students to put classroom learning into practice. These senior projects are the culmination of the undergraduate experience here at SAFS.
Josef Mayor’s (BS 2021) capstone project focused on Chinook salmon in the Stillaguamish River and how stream flow impacts salmon eggs as well as the timing of juvenile migrations. He plans to continue to work with his advisor Tom Quinn and publish the study before returning for graduate school.
Josef’s interest in science began when he was a child. His father, who was a longtime outdoors editor for the Tacoma News Tribune, traveled around the country on interviews and adventures, and Josef sometimes accompanied him. Josef reflects that his favorite places to travel were those with water and fish. Studying at SAFS became the “natural choice,” he says, “because I wanted to make sure my kids will have the same opportunities I did to explore fish-filled streams and lakes.”
Josef started working with salmon during an internship with the Stillaguamish Tribe’s Department of Natural Resources in his junior year. The opportunity allowed him to conduct field research and become familiar with salmon restoration efforts, data collection, and the watershed, and the Stillaguamish River eventually became his capstone study site.
Josef working on the Stillaguamish during his internship with the Stillaguamish Tribe. Josef Mayor
His project showed that higher water flow events in the Stillaguamish River resulted in higher egg mortality.
“The lack of a relationship between egg deposition and fry production was particularly surprising,” Josef said.
He also found that higher peak flows after emergence, when eggs hatch in February and March, resulted in a higher proportion of fry migrating to estuarine environments rather than staying in their natal streams and growing into parr.
“The Stillaguamish watershed has been considerably degraded in the context of rearing habitat, which led me to predict that there would be a high level of competition for that limited juvenile rearing habitat,” said Josef.
However, data he collected indicated that the population of Chinook salmon is still well below its carrying capacity and too small to result in competition that might have altered when juveniles migrate to the estuary. Rather, peak discharge events seem to be the primary driver of when juveniles head downstream as the added turbidity in the water offers additional protection from predators during migration.
Josef also looked at how future flow projections will be influenced by climate change and how increased flow events in the Stillaguamish River could impact these aspects of Chinook life history. Peak annual flows are expected to be much closer to the mortality threshold observed during his capstone research, reducing overall production in the river system. Flows are also expected to be more heavily rain-derived rather than a rain/snow mix, resulting in more advantageous conditions for fry migration.
Fry and parr use the estuarine environment to grow before heading out into the ocean at roughly the same time. It is possible fry and parr habitats will increasingly overlap if the environment becomes more fry dominant.
“A fry-dominant system is heavily reliant on a strong estuary system that can support the higher number of early migrants, which still require significant development before they can enter the ocean,” said Josef. “Estuaries, particularly in the Puget Sound, are in varying states of degradation due to human activities, such as diking, which cuts off land from the natural tidal influence and reduces the amount of available salmon habitat.”
Josef notes this is of particular importance because it suggests that estuary restoration efforts may become more vital than stream restoration in the future.
This capstone presentation, as well as all of those from this year’s graduating cohort, can be viewed online.
Martin Hall is a long-term and consistent champion for the School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences (SAFS). Martin was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and completed his undergraduate studies in marine biology at the University of Buenos Aires. His interests were mainly in ecology and resource management, which led to a background in statistics and quantitative ecology. After his undergraduate studies, he received a Fulbright Fellowship and earned his PhD at SAFS (then called the School of Fisheries).
At home at the School of Fisheries
“I felt extremely lucky to come across an amazing group of teachers and students,” says Martin. “My advisor was Douglas G. Chapman: He was a mixture of intellectual brilliance, open-mindedness, and wisdom, with a warm, friendly personality. He cared about the School’s students, and we were a priority for him”
Another of Martin’s many lucky encounters was with Professor Gordon Orians in the UW Zoology Department. Orians introduced students to evolutionary ecology, which led to a much better understanding of how populations functioned and how behaviors developed. “My approach to ecology and behavior was changed forever,” said Martin. Professor Ole Mathisen (1919–2007), Professor Emeritus Ken Chew and many other faculty and peers—“too many to list,” Martin said—were also contributors to his exceptional experience at SAFS.
The University’s array of related programs, which included fisheries, marine affairs, and oceanography, led to frequent collaboration between disciplines, increasing exchanges and diversifying educational opportunities. Martin found the plurality of perspectives and approaches to fisheries science and management especially valuable. “I had grown up with a very ‘vertical’ education,” says Martin. “There was only one right way. You listened to your teachers; it wasn’t a dialogue. But at SAFS, it was the opposite of vertical. Teachers, students, and researchers could express different views, co-exist, and collaborate, interacting in a constructive way. Students get the benefit of hearing multiple perspectives.”
For example, Martin wanted to study clams and proposed that, due to the nature of the organism, a forestry model could prove more effective than a fisheries model. Instead of pushing back and limiting his scope of options, Doug Chapman encouraged Martin: “My advisor was competent and intelligent and knew very well the traditional fishery science, but he was also open-minded. I was encouraged to explore new ways to study the populations. He was happy to listen to novel and different approaches, but always supporting them in solid science.”
“I had a personal connection with faculty. I was made to feel at home and welcome.” The School of Fisheries had a wonderful environment, building lasting connections between students and faculty: “Interactions were warm, personal, and supportive.”
A career spent forging solutions
The skills acquired at SAFS helped match critical thinking with an openness to learning and listening from fishers and other stakeholders. In 1984, Martin started working at the Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission and was given the task to reduce dolphin mortality in tuna purse seine fisheries. Suddenly, the rubber hit the road. Martin needed to use quantitative skills, but the “new” subject of bycatch mitigation required him to develop a strong and positive interaction with fishers and their communities. Martin had to acquire social communication skills on the go, and quickly. He and his colleagues used innovative scientific methods to control and reduce dolphin mortality very effectively. Simultaneously, they learned how to interact and develop good relations with conservation and industry stakeholders in an international setting. Above all, Martin learned that scientists should strive to bring an objective position to the discussion table and inform stakeholders.
Under Martin’s leadership, the tuna-dolphin program was a major success, pioneering novel management approaches and providing a model for other bycatch efforts. The attempts to reduce sea turtle mortality in the eastern Pacific artisanal fisheries brought him in contact with the world of the small-scale artisanal fisheries. These fishers lived at the edge of poverty, and the challenge of promoting conservation while trying to make their fisheries more sustainable was, and still is, a major task. Again, the interactions of scientists with fishers and their communities were a critical, basic ingredient. Learning how to bring the knowledge of the fishers to identify solutions to problems was an acquired skill developed through a systematic synthesis of data analysis and fisher engagement to inform practical solutions. Martin and his colleagues learned to ask questions to fishers and to listen to the answers, to understand their limitations, and to involve them in the search for practical, viable solutions that allowed them to continue making a living.
A legacy founded in gratitude
Martin’s positive experiences at the School of Fisheries—and his gratitude for the impactful career his education there made possible—are reflected in his personal support for SAFS.
With regard to his philanthropic contributions, Martin says simply, “Now that I have the opportunity to return some of what I received, I am happy to do that.” Martin knew firsthand about the practical value fellowship support can provide. “If a student has to spend many hours of the week with a part-time job when they could be pursuing their training to benefit not only their future but also the future of their country, community, and environment, then why not help them to do that?”
Martin made significant gifts to the Dayton “Lee” Alverson Endowed Fellowship as well as the Lobo Orensanz Endowed Fund for Student Support, which provide financial support to SAFS students and bear the names of men whose mentorship and friendship were especially meaningful to him. The endowments were established by family, friends, and colleagues to memorialize the outstanding contributions and impact Alverson and Orensanz made as leaders in fisheries.
Martin’s contributions to SAFS extend well beyond charitable giving. He has created a network of over a dozen well-qualified graduate students who have gone on to earn degrees at SAFS, including Ana Parma (PhD 1989) and most recently Maite Pons Barrios (PhD 2018). Like Martin, most came to Seattle from Latin America. Fellow Argentinian Lobo Orensanz (1945–2015), who earned his PhD in 1989, was the first of these referrals. Tby flow as branched out many times, bringing a steady flow of Latin American fisheries students to SAFS, creating a strong bond between the region and the School.
In 2020, Martin generously established the Martin Hall Fellowship for Fishery Innovations in Sustainability, which will support graduate students researching ecological impacts and sustainability of fisheries. The fellowship addresses the intersection of Martin’s career and interests. With this gift, Martin emphasizes how important it is for students to directly engage with fishers and fishing communities to identify innovative approaches to sustainability. He is hopeful that the next generation of fisheries scientists and managers will benefit from similar mentorships, friendships, and professional development opportunities to those that he experienced during his time at the UW.
Each year, our students, faculty, and staff win regional, national, and international awards. Please join us in congratulating this year’s group of award winners!
Students
Degree track and faculty advisers in parenthesis
Grant Adams (PhD, Punt) netted a NMFS Sea Grant Joint Fellowship in Population and Ecosystem Dynamics.
Elieen Bates (PhD, Padilla-Gamiño) received a scholarship from Next Swell.
Abby Bratt (PhD, Converse) obtained a Northwest Climate Adaption Science Center 2021–2022 Fellowship.
Ruth Drinkwater (BS), Josef Mayor (BS), Kerry Accola (MS, Horne), Stephanie Thurner (MS, Branch), Sean Rohan (PhD, Essington), and Yaaamini Venkataraman (PhD, Roberts) were given SAFS Faculty Merit Awards for 2021. This award recognizes outstanding efforts by students who have achieved high scholastic standing in the program.
Jessica Diallo (MS, Olden) received a Small Project Grant from the American Fisheries Society – Western Division, a Conservation Grant from the Desert Fishes Council, and a Conservation Research Grant from the North American Native Fishes Association
Rachel Fricke (MS, Olden) obtained a fellowship from the Washington American Water Resources Association and scholarships supported by the College of the Environment Integral Environmental Big Data Research Fund, the Society for Freshwater Science, and the Washington Lake Protection Association.
Chris Mantegna (PhD, Roberts) and Terrance Wang (MS, Hilborn/Punt) received National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowships.
Ana Olsen (BS) netted a Hollings Undergraduate Scholarship from NOAA.
Anna Polyakov (PhD, Berdahl) obtained a Hall Conservation Genetics Research Fund Award, a grant from the Stuntz Mycology Fund, and the Forest Fungal Ecology Research Award from the Mycological Society of America.
Hannah Sipe (PhD, Converse) obtained the best student talk award at the Marianas Terrestrial Conservation Conference for her presentation, “Paradise sought: the collaborative path to restoring Guam’s vertebrates.”
Ashley Townes (PhD, Schindler) received the spring 2021 SAFS DEIJ and Community Service Award.
Yaamini Venkataraman (PhD, Roberts), Jennifer Gardner (MS, Tornabene), and Kristin Priviteria-Johnson (PhD, Punt) obtained a Diversity and Inclusion Seed Grant sponsored by the UW Vice President for Minority Affairs and Diversity and the University Diversity Officer to support their Spring 2021 offering of the class, “Dark Side of Hot Topics: The Settler–Colonial and White Supremacist History of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences.”
Faculty, staff, and postdoctoral scholars
Tim Essington obtained the 2020–21 College of the Environment Outstanding Teaching Faculty Award.
Eleni Petrou and Jennifer Gosselin received the 2020–21 College of the Environment Outstanding Diversity Commitment Award, which recognizes outstanding leadership and innovative approaches to diversity and inclusion efforts.
Jackie Padilla-Gamiño obtained an NSF CAREER award.
John Wittouck and Carita Pascal received the 2020 SAFS Staff Award.
Dan DiNicola netted the Best Film and the Audience Choice Award for his film “Just Keep Swimming” from Western Division of the American Fisheries Society film festival in May 2021.
