This presentation is part of the Young Scientist Webinar Series, hosted by the Cape Perpetua Collaborative featuring graduate students and postdocs sharing their ocean research.
DESCRIPTION
Ocean acidification disrupts the carbonate chemistry of coastal ecosystems, which indirectly and directly affects communities that depend on critical marine organisms. Ocean acidification research typically seeks to understand natural system responses; yet, there is insufficient research that examines community and institutional responses or, more generally, their vulnerability to ocean acidification. Considering the insufficient information to direct policy efforts to combat ocean acidification, this project aims to understand the Dungeness crabbers’ perceptions of the adaptive capacity of ocean acidification and other environmental stressors. By understanding the perceptions of the four coastal communities, alongside perceptions of Oregonian decision and policy makers, the project hopes to contribute to broader efforts to apply human adaptive capacity to ocean acidification.
ABOUT THE SPEAKER, VICTORIA MORENO, MASTER OF PUBLIC POLICY STUDENT AT OSU
Victoria Moreno is pursuing her Master of Public Policy student from Oregon State University and working with Dr. Ana Spalding to analyze adaptive capacity along the West Coast. Her graduate research aims to understand the Dungeness crabbers’ perceptions of their ability to adapt to ocean acidification (OA) and other environmental stressors. Through interviews and policy analysis, Victoria hopes to provide an assessment of the Oregon Dungeness crab industry ability to adapt to OA and other environmental stressors. Victoria graduated in ’19 from the University of Richmond, with her BSc in Environmental Studies and Anthropology, where she explored the intersectionality of environmental change in marine ecosystems and corresponding human effects within the coastal communities. When she is not working on her research, she enjoys cooking, reading, engaging with the community and exploring the Pacific Northwest with her Great Pyrenees puppy.
