NEWS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND CENTER FOR ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
AUGUST 2017 
REEF program exposes students to the business side of science

The Ratcliffe Environmental Entrepreneurs Fellowship (REEF) program at UMCES' Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology (IMET) teaches select graduate students to turn their scientific research into a business plan. 

"One of the most challenging aspects of the program is learning to speak boldly about ourselves, our research, and our business proposals," said Mary Larkin, a graduate student who studies under her adviser, Allen Place. She uses zebrafish as a model species to research diet and inflammation and ways to mitigate inflammation. "Many of us are the quiet, introverted science types." She won Best Pitch this year.


Bill Dennison recognized by CERF for excellence in coastal and estuarine management

Dr. Bill Dennison, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science's Vice President for Science Application, has received the first Margaret A. Davidson Award for Stewardship from the Coastal and Estuarine Research Federation (CERF) for his trailblazing work to synthesize scientific results in a way that facilitates public awareness and management decisions.

Science in Action: Scientists study movements of black sea bass off coast of Ocean City in advance of wind turbine construction

Climb aboard the Fin Chaser with Dave Secor, fisheries expert and professor at UMCES' Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, and his research team. The goal of the day is to catch black sea bass and attach transmitters to them so the scientists can study their movements and how they respond to disturbances in the ocean. 

Secor will measure how the fish respond to construction of a meteorological tower that will be located at the center of the proposed site of Maryland's offshore turbine project. The effort will offer clues to how the fish may respond to the much larger turbine construction project to come.

 WATCH

Rose Jagus awarded Elkins Professorship

Professor Rose Jagus at the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology has been awarded the Wilson H. Elkins Professorship by the University System of Maryland for her contributions to increasing the diversity of scientists working in the marine sciences. She is the director of the Living Marine Resources Cooperative Science Center's summer undergraduate internship program at the Institute of Marine and Environmental Technology (IMET) in Baltimore.

"As we have come to understand, all students from institutions of inclusiveness are better equipped to go out and function well in our diverse world," said Jagus.

First Guanbara Bay report card shows watershed under stress

The University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science along with local partners in Brazil released the Guanabara Bay environmental health report Card--the first of its kind in Brazil--to track progress of global water management goals.  With a grade of D for the Bay and its watershed, the report card serves as a model for building comprehensive, community-driven, scientifically credible basin assessments that will help accelerate restoration efforts.

"Report cards like the one developed for Guanabara Bay condense relevant data into a grade reminiscent of what stakeholders receive in schools," said UMCES Chief of Staff Dave Nemazie. "Suddenly the status of the Bay and its watershed are clearer, and informed decisions can be made on how to minimize negative impacts and accelerate restoration efforts."

New children's book reveals the lost years of leatherback turtles

Helen Bailey, an associate research professor at the UMCES' Chesapeake Biological Laboratory has partnered with her long-term turtle research collaborator, George Shillinger, to write a children's book. "The Grande Turtle Adventure" is an  illustrated tale, told in rhyme, that simplifies years of research about where leatherback sea turtles go after they hatch.

"We really wanted to do a children's version of our research to help people understand, both through the children and their parents and teachers, what's going on, why these animals are at risk, and what we can do," said Bailey.

Watch the final installments on YouTube
Discover the Bay through the eyes of our scientists as our summer YouTube series "Discovering the Chesapeake" wraps up. Our scientists will talk about research studies they're proud of and the impact they made, popular and oft-overlooked creatures that live in the Bay, and even the marvels of the Bay that have affected them after years of research in the Chesapeake Bay's waters and watershed.  WATCH



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