Coastal & Marine Conservation

Brad Keitt (1997) has already been working to prevent extinctions caused by non-native species introduced to islands for decades. His non-profit, Island Conservation, prevents extinctions of native species by removing invasive species from islands. But the challenge of climate change has Keitt rethinking how his organization plans its projects and communicates about them.

Brenda Zollitsch (2009), whose work as a policy analyst at the Association of State Wetland Managers (ASWM) is partially funded by a Switzer Leadership Grant, says one underappreciated challenge in addressing wetland loss is a chasm between the management of these issues between programs.

Marine ecosystems can take thousands, rather than hundreds, of years to recover from climate-related upheavals. 2013 Fellow Sarah Moffitt examined fossilized fauna on the seafloor to chart the changes. "There’s not a recovery we have to look forward to in my lifetime or my grandchildren's lifetime. It’s a gritty reality we need to face as scientists and people who care about the natural world and who make decisions about the natural world," she says.

A healthy ocean ecosystem is a public good—both locally and globally. Mangroves, corals, and salt marshes protect coastal towns from storms. Oceans store carbon and produce oxygen that benefits us all. And areas of high biodiversity support global fisheries and are essential for resilient and productive oceans.

New research published in January reveals that vast stretches of the ocean interior abruptly lost oxygen during the transition out of the last ice age that occurred 17,000–10,000 years ago. This event was the most recent example of large-scale global warming, and was caused primarily by changes in Earth’s orbit around the sun. Past climate events provide informative case studies for understanding what is currently happening to the modern climate system, says 2013 Fellow Sarah Moffitt.

Join the Aqua Kids as they meet up with Dr. Elphick (Chris Field's advisor) to learn all about declining salt marsh bird habitat. From participating in grass research to coring trees, you will not want to miss all of the excitement in this week’s episode.

Organic matter in Narragansett Bay has shifted from its traditional role of filtering nitrogen from the aquatic ecosystem in Narragansett Bay and is instead adding nitrogen to the system, two researchers said earlier this month during a lecture at the University of Rhode Island.

There's a growing understanding of the factors that contribute to ocean acidification in coastal areas and how shellfish respond. A new study looks at the risks to shellfish and identifies areas where livelihoods are most at risk. ...

When you think about East Africa, probably the first images that emerge are of large terrestrial animals like elephants and lions. Many people don’t know that East Africa has vibrant marine fishing communities and hundreds of miles of coral reefs. In a typical morning, you watch the sun rise over the Western Indian Ocean, sip spicy tea, hear morning calls to prayer from the mosque, and see fishers heading out to the sea. These fishers work from small canoes, or even broken surfboards, to support families.