About me

I have spent my career working across marine science disciplines around the globe, inspiring a passion for people, data, and scientific leadership with an ultimate goal of ensuring that the science I do matters.

I am the Deputy Director for the Pacific Islands Ocean Observing System (PacIOOS), one of 11 regional associations that comprise the U.S. Integrated Ocean Observing System. We provide ocean data and data services to stakeholders across the Hawaiian Islands, U.S. Pacific territories, Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Federated States of Micronesia. My work ranges from internal and external partnership building and fiscal management to organizational operations and staffing. We maintain a distributed team of more than 50 scientific staff and dozens of projects, with grant funding from NOAA, the National Science Foundation, State Department, United Nations Environment Programme, Office of Insular Affairs, and more.

I previously spent more than a decade with NOAA Fisheries, at the Pacific Islands and Alaska Fisheries Science Centers (AFSC), as well as the NOAA Center for Artificial Intelligence (NCAI). During 10 years at the AFSC (based in Juneau, Alaska), my research explored how environmental drivers shape the distributions of fish and the fishing fleets that target them. I used a suite of quantitative tools and data types and worked to build more automated data systems capable of integrating satellite data (e.g., environmental and vessel tracking information) with oceanographic, fishery survey, landings, economic, and bycatch data. A highlight of my time at NOAA was a six month leadership detail as the acting Deputy Director for the NCAI, an exciting NOAA effort to leverage innovative technologies like AI.

I’ve worked in a dozen countries on five continents and have spent more than a year aboard oceanographic research vessels and nearly three years at remote field stations (mostly Antarctica and Alaska).

When I’m not playing with data, I am usually skiing (up or down) mountains, trail running, scuba diving, and experimenting in the kitchen.