UW School of Marine and Environmental Affairs

Support for SMEA Graduate Students Support students at the School of Marine and Environmental Affairs as we train the next generation of policy makers.

Thank you for amplifying SMEA’s mission to train the next generation of marine and environmental policy makers.

You’re making a difference! 💜

Make your gift today 👉 together.uw.edu/i/uw/campaig...

#TogetherUW #SMEA #MarineScience

Your contributions:
✅ Fuel the recruitment of world-class graduate students
✅ Strengthen fellowship funds throughout their studies
✅ Support students in earning their MMA degrees

🎯 Our Challenge: Raise $15,000 by Dec. 31, 2025.

When we reach this goal, an anonymous donor will unlock a matching gift—doubling your impact! ✨

SMEA graduates are equipped to seize opportunities and solve complex environmental problems—locally, nationally, and globally. 🌍

🌊 Now more than ever, students at the School of Marine and Environmental Affairs (SMEA) are committed to making a real-world impact.

They’re critical thinkers with diverse experiences and a passion for protecting our environment. 💜

A copper rockfish caught in the San Juan Islands in the early 2000s. Photo by Anne Beaudreau.

A copper rockfish caught in the San Juan Islands in the early 2000s. Photo by Anne Beaudreau.

New study from SMEA’s Anne Beaudreau + colleagues looks at a decade of rockfish conservation outreach. 🐟

They found collaborative research with fishers + divers builds the most trust, knowledge, and stewardship.

Read here: journals.plos.org/plosone/arti...

More Work: smea.uw.edu/about/news/2...

It’s official! The first day of classes is here! Welcome to the UW SMEA Class of 2027. We can’t wait to see what you’ll do 💜🐾 #HuskyPride #SMEAatUW

The U.S. hasn’t ratified. Will we treat it as customary law? Resist it? Ignore it? Still unclear.

Either way, it’s a major moment for anyone working in marine affairs—and a perfect “what I do” story for your Thanksgiving table. 🌍🐋

The treaty protects marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction, known as the high seas. It’s one of the most important ocean governance milestones in decades.

Photo of a news article cut out titled: Long-sought treaty to protect ocean life to become reality by the Seattle Times

🌊 The High Seas Treaty (aka the BBNJ Treaty) has been ratified! It enters into force in January 2026.

Read the full Treaty here: linktr.ee/uwsmea

SMEA’s Chris Sergeant joined Brittany Milner of Simon Fraser University’s Salmon Watersheds Lab to discuss how melting glaciers are impacting local salmon populations. 🐟❄️

Catch their recent interview on CBC’s The Weekender:
www.cbc.ca/listen/live-...

From sea to soil, Erick’s work shows the impact SMEA alumni are making after graduation!

#alumni #SMEAatUW

He’s also working with local farmers to repurpose that seem seaweed into a soil amendment to help restore nutrients to depleted agricultural soils.

First, Erick is teaming up with shellfish farmers to address Ulva (sea lettuce)- a nuisance seaweed that clogs gear and harms shellfish harvests.

🌟 Alumni Spotlight: Erick Dowell (Class of 2024) 🌟
Erick is a Washington Sea Grant Fellow with the Peugeot Sound Restoration Fund, and his work is bridging ocean and land.

Alumni Mentorship Program | School of Marine and Environmental Affairs SMEA Alumni Mentorship Program The School of Marine & Environmental Affairs is excited to launch the Alumni Mentorship Program this academic year! We welcome and encourage all alumni and friends of SM...

SMEA alumni & friends, we’re looking for mentors! 🌊

The Alumni & Friends Mentorship Program connects students with mentors who can share advice, encouragement, and career guidance.

Sign up to support the next generation of marine and environmental leaders: smea.uw.edu/alumni/alumn...

View from the deck of a Washington State Ferry at golden hour, showing the bridge, green railings, and dramatic sky overhead.

Wide view of Port of Seattle Terminal 5 with colorful shipping containers, a large ship-to-shore gantry crane, and the Seattle skyline in the distance.

View from inside the cab of a ship-to-shore gantry crane, looking down over a container ship with stacked cargo below and Seattle’s waterfront in the background.

View from outside the cab of a ship-to-shore gantry crane, looking out over a container ship with stacked cargo below and Seattle’s waterfront in the background.

Check out these summer snapshots from SMEA student Justin Hirsch, who's making the most out of his summer:

🌅 Golden hour aboard the Washington State Ferries → Friday Harbor Labs
🚢 Driving a ship-to-shore crane at Port of Seattle Terminal 5
⚓️ Operating a similar crane at Port of Seattle Terminal 18

Interested in the SMEA MMA program? 🌊 We’re hosting several Information Sessions this fall & winter! Learn about admissions, funding, FAQs, student panels & individual visit options. Sessions are offered both virtually and in person at the UW Seattle campus
Register here: smea.uw.edu/program/for-...

Read their full article in Restoration Ecology and see how restoration can benefit both ecosystems and vulnerable communities: linktr.ee/uwsmea

Their systematic review found that:

Most frameworks lack explicit justice goals

Few address historical harm

Indigenous & community voices are often missing

SMEA faculty P. Joshua Griffin & Erendira Aceves-Bueno co-authored a new paper in Restoration Ecology! 🌿
It reveals a big gap: most ecosystem restoration frameworks fail to include environmental justice.

From 1978 to 2024—SMEA grads are making waves in Japan! 🌏 Allen Shimada (MMA'85) met with Minister M. Sato & Noriko Sanefuji in D.C. to celebrate our alumni’s impact.

#SMEA #MarineAffairs

Join us for the 2025 SMEA Reception! 🌊

Connect with alumni, students, and faculty.
📅 November 22, 2025
🕠 5:00–7:00 PM
21+ event

RSVP: events.uw.edu/event/SMEAre...

#SMEA #UWAlumni

Assessing the social-ecological dimensions of Dungeness crab fishery closures in Southeast Alaska from analysis of public records Spatial management of marine resources is of growing interest at local, national, and international scales. Understanding the characteristics of spati…

A big finding: management tools like closed areas can meet social, cultural, & subsistence needs—not just ecological ones.

Read more here: www.sciencedirect.com/science/arti...

By analyzing over a decade of public meeting records, the team uncovered the ways policy, ecology, & community intersect in fishery management.

A stack of crab pots in Juneau, Alaska. Photo by Anne Beaudreau.

📘 New paper alert!

SMEA alum Rondi Nordal (’24), with faculty Anne Beaudreau & Erendira Aceves-Bueno, teamed up with NOAA colleagues to study the Dungeness crab fishery in Southeast Alaska.

Container ships account for nearly half of vessel transits in Puget Sound and are the largest contributors to underwater noise. Their participation in slowdowns makes a measurable difference for whales.
Check out the study here: quietsound.org/motivating-c...

Research by Program Manager Sara Adams and a recent UW SMEA grad highlights five key factors:
– Program design
– Information-sharing
– Operational context
– External influences
– Industry values

Quiet Sound just published a new study exploring what motivates container ship operators to participate in voluntary slowdowns. Reducing underwater noise and protecting endangered orcas in Puget Sound.