The Organizers

 

Michelle K Drake, UCSC MARINE liaison 

 

Michelle studies paleoceanography and paleclimatology to learn how the past climate can inform our understanding of ongoing climate change. Michelle is a PhD student in Ocean Sciences at UC Santa Cruz, advised by Dr. Christina Ravelo. Her current research focuses on the evolution of sea-ice and ice sheets in the Bering Sea during the earliest Ice Ages. She received her Masters from Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in 2013, while working with Dr. Ivano Aiello. Her Masters thesis was a sedimentological study of millennial scale climate variability in the Bering Sea during the last Ice Age and deglaicial period. Newest hobby is roller blading in homemade tie dye. Check out her website. 

 

Monica Moritsch, UCSC MARINE liaison 

 

​Monica is a PhD candidate in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UC Santa Cruz. She is interested in intertidal community ecology and the trophic interactions that influence marine ecosystems. Her research focuses on identifying possible environmental contributors to sea star wasting syndrome outbreaks and its ecological consequences for intertidal communities. She is also interested in helping fellow students access resources to benefit their careers and connect with the greater marine science community. Monica is originally from Sacramento and received a BS in Molecular Environmental Biology from UC Berkeley. For more information about Monica's research, visit her website.

 

 

Kyle H Broach, UCSC

 

​Kyle is PhD student in Earth and Planetary Sciences at UC Santa Cruz working in the Biogeochemistry Lab.  His research focuses on rainfall variability and drought frequency in the tropics with a current project in the Yucatan Peninsula.  Broadly he is interested in climate-induced changes in the hydrologic cycle and the impact on water resources and the suite of geochemical isotopes used to determine those changes.  Kyle is from Tennessee and received B.A.s in chemistry and geology from Vanderbilt University.  Before graduate school he spent several months hiking half of the Appalachian Trail, and in his occasional spare time he enjoys hiking, cooking, and gardening.  His research and other projects can be found on his website.

 

 

Caitlin Kroeger, UCSC

 

​Caitlin is a PhD student in Ocean Sciences at UC Santa Cruz. Her research focuses on comparing the energetics of two closely related albatross species in relation their foraging behaviors and environmental factors. Before graduate school, Caitlin spent several years conducting seabird ecology research on islands throughout the North Pacific and Bering Sea. She completed her BS in Wildlife, Fish & Conservation Biology at UC Davis in 2007. When not in the field or behind her computer, Caitlin spends her time trying not to fall off large rocks and trying not to fall over on the dance floor.

 

 

Laura Good, Center for Ocean Solutions

Laura Good is the education manager for the Center for Ocean Solutions where she manages our leadership development and ocean education activities, including the MARINE program. Originally from the UK, Laura’s background is in Marine Resource Management and Informal Science Education. Laura earned her BS in ocean science from the University of Plymouth (UK), and both her MS in marine resource management and PhD in science education from Oregon State University. Her research interests center on marine education, scientist engagement in education and outreach, and professional development for informal educators, where her doctoral work focused on the interpretive practice of science center docents as they communicate science to the public. Laura specializes in free choice learning, a term used to describe learning that takes place in our everyday lives, where we have choice and control over the learning opportunities at hand.

 

 

Elizabeth Lam, Center for Ocean Solutions

Liz Lam joined the Center for Ocean Solutions as an education intern in October of 2015 and has produced many of the visuals and graphic designs used by the MARINE Oceans Colloquium. She is currently working towards her Masters degree at Moss Landing Marine Labs with a focus in biological oceanography. Her research interests involve aquatic invasive species and the prevention of their spread through commercial ballast water tanks. She is hoping to determine the most effective testing method for evaluating ballast water treatment efficacy by comparing an array of molecular and physiological techniques. As a part of the Golden Bear Facility, which acts as an official testing location for ballast treatment vendors, Liz has sailed around the South Pacific and throughout the Mediterranean aboard the training ship Golden Bear.