The Women
Who Saved Monterey Bay
Monterey Bay has been heralded as a huge success story in the re-birth of ocean ecosystems after their decline in the 19th and 20th centuries. These successes came because of the dedication and creativity of community leaders and scientists focused on the local value of a healthy Monterey Bay. That past work continues, with folks throughout the area continuing to look ahead and beyond. This talk will highlight these amazing people, including Julia Platt, Frances Clark, Isabella Abbott, Julie Packard, Nancy Burnett, and Violet Sage Walker. Join the DWMC in welcoming Stephen Palumbi, former Director of the Hopkins Marine Lab, and Fionenza Micheli, current Co-director of Hopkins, as they share the inspiring efforts to save Monterey Bay.
ABOUT OUR SPEAKERS
Stephen Palumbi is the Jane and Marshal Steel Jr. Professor of Marine Sciences, Professor of Oceans and of Biology. Dr. Palumbi has lectured extensively on human-induced evolutionary change, has used genetic detective work to identify whales, seahorses, rockfish and sharks for sale in retail markets, and is developing genomic methods to help find ocean species resistant to climate change. Work on corals in American Samoa and Palau has identified corals more resilient to heat stress. Work at the Hopkins Marine Station focuses on how kelp, sea urchins, abalone and mussels respond to short term environmental changes and to environmental shifts over small spatial scales. He has authored many books including the Death and life of Monterey Bay: A Story of Revival, written with Carolyn Sotka.
Fiorenza Micheli is Chair of the Ocean Department, co-director of Stanford’s Center for Ocean Solutions, and a marine ecologist at the Hopkins Marine Station of Stanford University, where she is the David and Lucile Packard Professor of Marine Science. Micheli’s research focuses on the processes shaping marine communities and coastal social-ecological systems, and incorporating this understanding in marine management and conservation. She investigates climatic impacts on marine ecosystems, particularly the impacts of hypoxia and ocean acidification on marine species, communities and fisheries, marine predators’ ecology and trophic cascades, the dynamics and sustainability of small-scale fisheries, and the design and function of Marine Protected Areas. Her current research takes her to Mexico, Italy, and Palau, in addition to California.