Marine protected areas are areas protected from human use to support conservation, marine biodiversity and sustainable fisheries — but the MPA restrictions can vary widely from area to area, limiting conservation and making it difficult to understand what proportion of marine ecosystems are truly protected. Marine ecologists Kirsten Grorud-Colvert and Jenna Sullivan-Stack and collaborators developed The MPA Guide, a science-based tool and framework that identifies different types of MPAs and connects these types of MPAs with the outcomes they are expected to achieve.

Microbiologist Ryan Mueller and collaborators from the Colleges of Veterinary Medicine and Agricultural Science found that treating one day old oyster larvae with a single dose of probiotics significantly boosted larvae survival rates from a common bacteria. This discovery is a huge boon for oyster farms in Oregon (~$12M industry) and all along the west coast because these marine pathogens can devastate entire seasons of larvae, costing hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses. The research team envisions applying the probiotic treatment as freeze-dried material that can be sprinkled into spawning buckets, a simple and cost effective solution for farmers.

NOAA’s $1.2 million Ocean Technology Transition program supports the transition of emerging marine observation technology from research to operation. College of Science and College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences researchers are working with industry, Tribal and government partners to develop a low-cost sensor that collects and shares data in an automated and easy to use way, such as an app with notifications.

The freshwater parasites C. shasta and P. minibicornis can cause disease in salmonids downstream of the dams in the Klamath River. Less is known about these parasites in the hydroelectric reach, the region between the dams, and raises the question of how the project reach and proximal river sections will change following dam removal in 2024. Microbiologists Jerri Bartholomew, Julie Alexander and Sascha Hallett are part of a collaborative project with ODFW and CDFW fish biologists that quantifies and documents parasite distribution and host density and infection in the hydroelectric project reaches.

Ecologist Jane Lubchenco, a world-renowned scientist and influential policy leader who served in both the Obama and Biden administrations, is a longtime champion of redefining the role of science in society. She champions a modern “social contract” for scientists — one that values both the pursuit of foundational knowledge and a responsibility to engage with society. This includes addressing urgent global challenges and actively supporting colleagues and students who work to translate science into practical solutions.