I am a biologist and a surfer. I grew up on, in and under the water on the west coast of the United States. The ocean that I grew up with is not the ocean we have today; while change is inevitable, at the very least we have to be cognizant of why and how these changes occur. The ‘very least’ however is not enough! Humans are now an integral part of most ecological systems, and, I believe, must learn to treat our involvement as a respectful collaboration or to modulate our involvement to the point where we are only observers. 

I have studied the fishes that aggregate beneath floating objects, what fish see and why they have the colors they do, and the movements of fishes as they transition from juveniles to adults, but I am curious about most things outdoors. I am good with numbers and looking for patterns that require statistics to find them, and I especially like conducting experiments that explore interesting questions regarding behavior or physiology.

Here in California, I work with fishermen to collect the kinds of information needed to manage fisheries and protect marine ecosystems. In the U.S., managers and scientists have told fishermen where to fish, when to fish and how much to fish for decades; sometimes this has worked but often the results have been poor. We are working now to make fishermen partners in the management process. Obviously, fishermen know the sea. They know that taking too much, too fast will result in scarcity. So, clearly, fishermen can and should be stewards of the ocean. Our seafood markets and our history of fisheries management make this difficult to achieve, but I think that we are beginning to make progress. I would be honored to help to contribute some of the science that we have acquired in the United States, as well as our experience involving communities in managing their resources. I expect, however, that I will learn at least as much from the people of Ulithi.

• Studies water quality of estuaries to reduce the negative effects of eutrophication, specifically in the Elkhorn Slough on the central coast of California
• Manages a water quality monitoring program which has been monitoring the Elkhorn Slough Watershed on a monthly basis since 1989, one of the longest running water quality monitoring programs in the state.
• Manages four permanent water quality monitoring stations for the National Estuarine Research Reserve at Elkhorn Slough. Two of the stations have been sampling every 15 minutes since 1995.
• Currently incorporating UAS Drone surveys to monitor and restore wetland habitats
• Graduated from Moss Landing Marine Labs in 2002
• Outside of work you will find John surfing or with his wife, Gala, and their two girls, Jade and Ananda, on their farm with chickens, goats, and dogs

• Social Scientist at the NOAA’s Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center
• Pacific Island Regional Socioeconomic Monitoring Coordinator for the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network 
• Studying the links between human well-being, governance and conservation effectiveness with the IUCN Commission on Environmental, Economic & Social Policy 
• Ph.D. (Human Geography): University of Hawai’i at Mānoa

• 2018 & 2019 Ulithi Youth Program Instructor
• 2017 Outer Islands Expedition Science Team Member
• Fourth year doctoral candidate at the University of California Santa Cruz in the Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Department
• Researching the ability of coral reef fishes to adapt to climate change
• National Science Foundation Research Fellow
• M.Sc. in marine science from King Abdullah’s University of Science and Technology
• B.S. in marine biology from University of California at Davis

• Undergraduate Student in the Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology at the University of California Santa Cruz
• Host of biweekly Zooms for youth from Ulithi & outer islands gather to discuss reef conservation and collaborate on various multimedia projects

Slate is from the outer islands of Yap Feshaiulap, Folalap Woleai & the island of Chuuk (Oneisomw).

“I like to share memories and passion with the world. I love to share my culture proudly over social media with a few of my peers. My skills with music are that I don’t just sing or write songs, it has to come from my background or personal experience. I want to understand it, put meaning to it and perform it with heart. So personally I have an ability to talk about music”

Being born and raised in Santa Barbara, I had always had an interest in marine life and processes due to me growing up so close to the beach. This curiosity led me to major in marine biology at Santa Barbara City College and to volunteer at the Santa Barbara Museum of Natural History Sea Center. With these two resources I was able to have the opportunity to educate the public about the marine life found in the Santa Barbara Channel and physical processes like how beaches are made. My interest in corals came when the Sea Center got a tropical coral reef tank where I was able to see how beautiful and interesting these animals were face to face. This would ultimately lead me to intern under Dr. Michelle Paddack where we are looking into the effects that typhoon Maysak had on the distribution of corals on the reefs in Ulithi.