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Alaska Sea Grant Advisory Committee Annual Meeting

Monday and Tuesday, November 16–17, 2015 UAA Gorsuch Commons

Meeting objectives: Review the work and impacts of Alaska Sea Grant’s year, and seek input from Advisory Committee members on:

● Emerging issues in Alaska ● New initiatives by Alaska Sea Grant in coastal resilience: hazards/environmental

change, food security, and community economic resilience ● Supporting Alaska Sea Grant’s resilience: review of SWOT analysis and strategies to

help with name recognition, funding, and staff and Advisory Committee succession Participants: AC members – Jeff Stephan, Chair; Steve Borell, Steve Davis, Peggy Cowan, Pete Esquiro, Holly Kent (substituting for Molly McCammon), Jennifer Lincoln, Vera Metcalf, Henry Mitchell, Dan O’Hara, Mary Pete, John Shively, Bill Streever, Eric Volk, Bob Winfree, and David Witherell (Absent – John Garner, Kelly Harrell, Lea Klinkert, Fred Schlutt, and David Wigglesworth). Alaska Sea Grant staff and Marine Advisory faculty – Paula Cullenberg, Torie Baker, Beverly Bradley, Adie Callahan, Ginny Eckert, Lauren Frisch, Carol Kaynor, Sue Keller, Deborah Mercy, Dawn Montano, Sunny Rice, and Marilyn Sigman. Guests – Joan Braddock, UAF SFOS Interim Dean; Mike Liffmann, National Sea Grant Program Officer (via phone); Amy Holman, NOAA Alaska Regional Coordinator; Ellen Chenoweth, graduate student; Matt Robinson, Alaska Sea Grant State Fellow; Mike Powers, UAF Interim Chancellor (via phone); Erik O’Brien, SWAMC; and Toby Schwörer, UAA ISER Please see http://seagrant.uaf.edu/about/ac/2015/ for individual presentations. Monday, November 16 Welcome, introductions – Jeff Stephan, Chair, and Paula Cullenberg, Director Jeff Stephan: There have been some changes in the Advisory Committee (AC): Arliss Sturgulewski and Bruce Bustamante have resigned. I appreciate the Alaska Sea Grant (ASG) monthly reports sent to the AC members—they are action packed, reflecting the work of creative and hard-working faculty and staff. Alaska Sea Grant year in review – Paula Cullenberg, Director The School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences (SFOS) Interim Dean Joan Braddock will be here, and Interim Chancellor Mike Powers will call in. Brad Moran from Rhode Island has been hired as the new SFOS dean; he will start in early January. UA has a new president—Jim Johnsen. Currently there are no legislative representatives on the AC. We will discuss adding and/or replacing members during this meeting.

2015 Alaska Sea Grant Advisory Committee Meeting Notes

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Recently ASG held the Smoked Seafood School in Kodiak, which has been held 4-5 times. It is very popular, with 22 professional and lay people attending this one; 10 of those were from out of state.

National Sea Grant is in NOAA. There are 33 programs nationwide, all affiliated with universities. UAF is a Land Grant, Sea Grant, and Space Grant university. ASG has 27 faculty and staff, with 12 here at this meeting. We are a small program but we have our fingers in a lot of things. We have a strategic plan, which we will soon be updating; the new one will start in 2017. We operate under four National Sea Grant themes with seven goals. We have Marine Advisory Program (MAP) agents in nine communities in Alaska. We get $2 million each year in federal dollars, matched with state funds through the university. In addition we bring in $1.8 million in external funding, bringing the total to about $6 million. We do research, education, outreach, and extension work. We are required to spend 40% of the federal money on research. Our partners help us reach further. Our press releases throughout the past year mark some key projects and activities. In December 2014 ASG put out a research RFP (request for proposals). Also in December ASG partnered with AOOS to host a seminar and workshop on ocean acidification (OA), attended by about 100 people and streamed to a wider audience. A call to action was issued, seeking needed monitoring and research.

In January 2015 ASG had a press release on the new ASG State Fellowship program. We have two fellows now—Marysia Szymkowiak at NMFS in Juneau and Matt Robinson at the North Pacific Fishery Management Council in Anchorage. ASG also has a Knauss Fellow starting in February, Erin Shew, and Thomas Farrugia is at the end of his 2105 Knauss Fellowship in DC. Erin is in DC seeking a host now. In February ASG hired Chris Sannito. He is not getting any salary money from UAF, so we have soft funds to pay him. Chris is working on a pollock roe research project and taught the smoked seafood school. Also in February the new Sikuliaq research vessel visited Ketchikan, Juneau, Seward, and Nome, where MAP agents did a great job bringing in community residents for tours and education. The ship is owned by the National Science Foundation and operated by UAF. Sikuliaq is an Inupiaq word meaning “forming ice.” Scientists on the ship have been carrying out research in the Bering Sea this season, on ice edge and waves and many other projects.

In March ASG had a site review in Anchorage and Fairbanks. Many AC members were involved. National Sea Grant oversees the review for each program every five years. The panel of experts confirmed that ASG meets the standards of excellence and named two best management practices: faculty mentoring and the Advisory Committee. Also in March Gay Sheffield gave a talk at NOAA Science Days in DC on her research on bowhead whales in collaboration with the Alaska Eskimo Whaling Commission. Her hometown newspaper in Providence, RI, published a story on Gay’s work. That month ASG released a new book by Kate Wynne, Guide to Marine Mammals and Turtles of the U.S. Pacific. Kate has retired and now lives in Juneau but is still doing some work for ASG. ASG assisted with a NIOSH–University of Washington study on fisherman health and life style challenges. Torie Baker has helped investigators work with Cordova gillnetters.


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● Torie Baker: Salmon gillnetters have a 5 month fishing season and good Internet. They used Fitbits to monitor fishermen pre- and mid-season. The project was well received by the fishermen and their families; the community embraced it. Using phone apps to assess, researchers found the fishermen had upper body chronic pain in shoulder and rotator cuff, loss of hearing, and under-diagnosed sleep apnea. Fishermen learned fatigue management and some now use a more ergonomically correct fish pick with a fatter handle.

● Jennifer Lincoln: Fisherman health studies have been done in the Gulf of Mexico. I recommended an Alaska study. This was a pilot study.

Paula Cullenberg: In May a Wakefield Fisheries Symposium was held in Anchorage on data-limited fisheries. The symposium series is a tool for federal and state fisheries managers and an update on the state of knowledge.

● Sue Keller: During the 3.5 day symposium scientists gave presentations and panels were held. The panels received many compliments and the attendees were pleased that so many world experts on the topic were present. The next Wakefield will be on the impact of climate change on fisheries in the north, probably to be held in February 2017.

Paula Cullenberg: “Maritime Works” has been formed with 15 industry partners and APICC (Alaska Process Industry Careers Consortium), to boost training for maritime jobs. Recently there was a meeting in Anchorage. Thirteen UA units are now offering training for Alaska maritime jobs. In May shellfish farming workshops were held by Ray RaLonde. Ray has since retired and his position will not be refilled. ASG is being impacted by state budget cuts. Despite Ray’s departure, ASG was able to get an aquaculture grant from NOAA through National Sea Grant. ASG will host a workshop on cultivating macroalgae at the Alaska Shellfish Growers Association meeting in Ketchikan among other projects. In June ASG and partners coordinated Alaska Seas and Rivers educational activities in Anchorage, Dillingham, Unalaska, and Yakutat. Also in June Bree Witteveen and Kate Wynne played an important role in coordinating experts to assess the cause of multiple fin whale deaths. Likely the cause is harmful algal bloom toxins but it has not been confirmed. Julie Matweyou, in Kodiak, has expertise in PSP and HABs, and helped build the HAB researcher network at the time of the whale deaths. HABs toxin monitoring is not taking place. There is a need to improve the ability to respond to such hazards, take samples, and investigate.

In July Julie Matweyou concluded an Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation–Kodiak community study to test recreational/subsistence shellfish for PSP. (Similar partner-projects have been carried out in the Aleutians and in Southeast Alaska.) DEC does not have the capacity to test for PSP in a timely way. In Old Harbor and Ouzinkie there is a high rate of teacher turnover, which impacted the study. DEC tests commercially harvested shellfish but not recreational/subsistence shellfish for PSP. In the Aleutians Melissa Good posts DEC test results on Facebook to get the information back to the residents.

● Ginny Eckert: DEC used to do HPLC testing which was fast, but now they are back to doing mouse assay tests which are slow—24 hours. This is an organizational problem. The Sitka Tribe is building their own lab to do testing in that region. The state does not want to take on PSP testing for noncommercial shellfish.


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Paula Cullenberg: In August Gabe Dunham built the fish composting area in Dillingham with a CIAP grant (Community Impact Assistance Program, State of Alaska). The community is pleased with the project.

● Mary Pete: Bethel does fish composting. ● Dan O’Hara: We have a meal plant in Naknek, with fertilizer as one of the products, very

high-tech. Paula Cullenberg: In September Sunny Rice was on the organizing committee for the 7th Rainforest Festival.

● Sunny Rice: Climate change science is one of the focuses. We have been working on getting the community information level up to where citizens are talking about climate change. The RFF, Science Friday on the radio, community lecture series, and NOSB high school competition training have all contributed to community education about climate change.

Paula Cullenberg: In October ASG released a story about ASPLI, Alaska Seafood Leadership Institute—leadership training for seafood processors. In fall they get technical and safety training, over the winter they do a project, and in spring they get management courses. Mid-level career managers become better leaders, and their companies pay for the training. Some vocational training funds are made available through UA. Because of state budget cuts UAF wants to transfer the Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center (KSMSC) to UA. The problem is that they could use it for anything, while the labs there are specifically equipped for seafood research. They are seafood processing pilot plants. In September ASG had an all-staff meeting in Nome. Vera Metcalf attended. In October ASG’s Encountering Environmental Hazards website was released, showing which agencies to call when you see an anomaly. Now ASG is recruiting a coastal community resilience faculty member; last week was the interviewing stage. Partners in providing salary are ASG, National Sea Grant, NOAA Climate Office, National Weather Service, National Ocean Service, ACCAP, and AOOS. As many as 28 people applied. Possibly the person would start working in January. It will be nice to have a faculty member with this expertise. In November ASG had a press release on the upcoming 6th Alaska Young Fishermen’s Summit (AYFS) in Juneau. Attendees will be able to meet with their state representatives.

● Torie Baker: The target audience is fishermen in their first 5 years in the business, and crew who want to get into it. Fisheries organizations and boat owners are finding the fishermen they believe are good candidates. More than 300 have graduated from AYFS. ADFG and others are consulted about how to improve the summits in the future.

Paula Cullenberg: ASG economic impacts—$1.4 million invested results in $3.4 million in businesses and jobs created. Human health risks are decreased by ASG’s role in the discovery of avian cholera, oiled seals, HABs. Leadership training is a strength, as well as seafood safety and research in sustainable management.

Some staff updates. Sunny Rice is now an ASG associate program leader. In Unalaska Melissa Good is not paid with any SFOS money—the position is shared with the UAF Interior Aleutians Campus. Chris Sannito does not get UAF funds for salary—he is paid with grants. Astrid Rose was recently hired as an administrative assistant in Kodiak. Lauren Frisch is an ASG/SFOS communications intern. Ray RaLonde and Kate Wynne retired. Departing in the


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next year are Bree Witteveen, Deborah Mercy, and Carol Kaynor. And more changes are coming. Funding figures. Donations amount to about $30K annually, mostly for travel. ASG sells books, bringing in about $30K, and holds workshops, which bring in about $70K per year. Federal dollars are up a bit while university money is dropping. NOAA Alaska, coastal resilience, and Alaska Sea Grant’s role – Amy Holman, NOAA Alaska Regional Coordinator There is a need to “collect the voices.” Spill responses and preparedness. NOAA is doing the following: (1) NOAA habitat blueprint.

● Steve Davis: The habitat blueprint initiative demonstrates the power of collaboration and partnering. Resilience of Alaska habitats.

Amy Holman: (2) Coastal Resilience Grant Program. Melissa Good submitted a proposal, and should be notified before Thanksgiving. Communities improve resilience. (3) NOS Roadmap. Outcomes are spill response, communities improve, communities utilize natural and nature-based infrastructure to enhance resilience to hazards, “living shoreline.” (4) US Climate Resilience Toolkit. Resilience is a big umbrella term. What does ASG want as a marquee? Contributing new knowledge: Alaska Sea Grant’s research process and results, 2015 – Ginny Eckert, Associate Director for Research For the 2016-2018 RFP the AC was helpful. Because of the AC input we put out a broad RFP last December. ASG works with a 4 year chunk of money, and every 2 years we fund new research projects. We follow National Sea Grant rules for the competitive proposals. Projects can be for about $100,000, following the ASG strategic plan and focus areas. They must benefit Alaska communities, focus on emerging issues, and have an outreach component. We got 38 proposals. A panel of outside experts (with AC members) met, some with video connection. This year we streamlined the preproposal part of the process by making them shorter and not requiring a budget. Then we invited the top 13 to submit full proposals. Not all SG programs narrow it down—some programs give feedback to all preproposal submitters and invite all to submit full proposals. That puts more of a burden on the reviewers. We lined up 3 reviewers for each ahead of time to avoid field season non-responses; reviewers are confidential. We ranked the proposals, and a panel ultimately selected five for funding out of research money and one partial funding out of development funds. They will all start February 1, 2016.The projects are: 1. Navigating the predator gauntlet: Impacts of nearshore marine fishes on hatchery and wild juvenile salmon in Southeast Alaska; Anne Beaudreau, UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences 2. Parallel and divergent fishery management structures in state and federal waters; Keith Criddle, UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences; Gordon Kruse, UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences 3. Exploring linkages between marine and freshwater ecosystems to predict sockeye salmon responses to climate change and to inform enhancement options on Kodiak Island, Alaska; Heather Finkle, Alaska Department of Fish and Game; Peter Westley, UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences; Anne Beaudreau, UAF School of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences


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4. Stakes for stakeholders: Community-based shoreline erosion monitoring; Jacqueline Overbeck, Alaska Division of Geological & Geophysical Surveys; Sue Flensburg, Bristol Bay Native Association; Gabe Dunham, UAF Marine Advisory Program; Christopher Maio, UAF Department of Geology and Geophysics, 5. Assessing the costs and benefits of whale watching in Juneau, Alaska; Heidi Pearson, University of Alaska Southeast 6. Incorporating environmental change in planning for healthy coastal ecosystems and economies; Audrey R. Taylor, University of Alaska Anchorage; Gary A. Lamberti, University of Notre Dame; Martin B. Berg, Loyola University Chicago Current projects are 1. Habitat Degradation Due to Melting Glaciers: Effects of Glacial Discharge on Kelp Bed Community Recruitment and Succession in Kachemak Bay 2. Applying Regime Shift Indicators to Understand the Potential Impacts of a Multi-Year Cold Event on the Bering Sea Ecosystem 3. Economic Viability of a Directed Skate Fishery in the Gulf of Alaska 4. Recovering Humpback Whales and the Future of Alaska’s Hatcheries, Fisheries and Coastal Communities 5. Sustainability of Coastal Communities and Sea Otters: Harvest and Future Management of Sea Otters 6. Industry-Based Documentation of the Effectiveness of F3 "Whale Pingers" at Reducing Humpback Whale Interactions with Alaska Salmon Fisheries 7. Long-Term Records of Abundance and Effects of Large Scale Climate Change on Alaska Peninsula Sockeye Salmon 8. Graying of the Fleet in Alaska's Fisheries: Defining the Problem and Assessing Alternatives (Plus 4 community resilience projects.) Building Capacity: The Alaska Sea Grant State Fellowship Program – Adie Callahan, Alaska Sea Grant Program Coordinator; David Witherell, North Pacific Fishery Management Council; Matt Robinson, Alaska Sea Grant State Fellow Adie Callahan: With your input and advice, last year ASG launched the Alaska Sea Grant State Fellowship to recruit and promote local talent in the state to work in marine resource policy and sciences. We put out the call for Alaska-based state and federal hosts last November. Of the 12 that expressed interest, 5 were able to commit, and 3 of those were from this committee. The hosts for last year were the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation, US Arctic Research Commission, National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (thank you, Jennifer Lincoln), NOAA Fisheries/NMFS in Juneau (thank you to Steve Davis), and the North Pacific Fishery Management Council (thank you, Dave Witherell).

We advertised for fellowship applications in December and at the February 13 deadline we had received 11 applications. Of those 11 we interviewed 6 via videoconference. Jeff and Molly were on the interview committee.

The interview was our chance to select 3 applicants to advance to finalists who then traveled to Anchorage for Placement Day at the end of March. Placement Day was the chance


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for the finalists and hosts to meet and interview each other. In the end, Marysia Szymkowiak was placed at NMFS in Juneau and Matt Robinson was placed at the Council here in Anchorage. Marysia is working on the halibut and sablefish IFQ program and Matt is working on the Bering Sea fisheries ecosystem plan.

After the process, Paula, Ginny and I debriefed with the participants and we identified a few challenges and areas to improve this next cycle. One area to clarify is the process to evaluate the applicants’ intent to stay in Alaska. We could also increase our recruitment efforts to maximize recruiting students with a policy interest. We’ve been successful recruiting students from the Northern Studies program at UAF. Two additional places to advertise the fellowship this year are in Craigslist and LinkedIn. On promotional materials and our website we will increase the emphasis on the students’ intent to stay in Alaska.

The other challenge was a bit more complicated and that is refining the matching process—the process to match finalists with hosts. We have a list of many ideas, but haven’t decided which ideas to implement yet.

● When selecting an applicant for the interview process, consider having at least one good applicant for each host.

● Have the applicants express which hosts they are interested in when they apply. ● Ask the finalists for their top 3 hosts to visit during Placement Day. They don’t have to

interview with all the hosts. ● Allow a week after Placement Day for the finalists to follow up with the hosts to clarify

questions they may have after sitting and interviewing with all the hosts. They could use the time to write thank-you letters and follow up with hosts as needed. This is different from this year when we asked the finalists and the hosts to rank their order of preference at the end of Placement Day. Allowing a little more time to make the decision could be helpful.

● Another idea is to forgo Placement Day and instead allow a specific timeframe for the students to pursue the hosts. The fellow would select which host they would like to work for and ask the host once they’ve made their decision. If the host agrees and still has availability, it would be a match.

We wondered if the hosts should be involved with the interview process, but the consensus from the hosts was no, leave that process and decision up to ASG. We also wondered if the host position descriptions should be made public to the applicants ahead of time. The consensus from the hosts and fellows was to continue to post them but perhaps to provide a template with a max word count, duties, and skills the fellow can expect to learn at that agency.

As for this year, we’ve sent out the host invites. You should be receiving one in the mail shortly. We would like there to be a state agency host but with the funding situation, that may not be possible again this year. We have also set up a state fellowship foundation account at UAF for tax-deductible contributions. Matt Robinson: The interview process was very useful. When people explain their agency you get a broader perspective. A position can be molded based on what the student has to offer. In the Council I first was working on developing a fisheries ecosystem plan. Since then I have taken on different things. The amendment process is a good fit for me. I have three projects 1.


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Bering Sea Fishery Ecosystem Plan. 2. Amendment summary. 3. Observers. Diana Evans is my mentor. Dave Witherell: Having Matt as a fellow in the Council is very successful. We are small with 15 staff working closely together. We look for stability and compatibility when we bring in someone new. Matt fits right in. He has a strong mentor. We hope to have an opening we can offer him after this year. He is well spoken, and will be in a good position to get a job. Marysia Szymkowiak is working on IFQs and her agency is impressed by her work.

● Steve Davis: Marysia is at NMFS in Juneau, in a larger group of 120 employees, which can be a challenge. NMFS could have done a better job in their application—it may have been better to narrow the job focus. Marysia is doing very well and will attend a Council meeting soon. Rachel Baker is her mentor. NMFS should support more of these fellows; it is very promising.

News from National Sea Grant – Mike Liffmann, National Sea Grant, Program Officer for Alaska Sea Grant (via phone) I will retire soon. Alaska’s Knauss Fellow [Erin Shew] is looking for her position this week as are all the 2016 fellows. We call it “speed dating 101.” I am in Florida at the moment at a meeting on working waterfronts. Jim Berkson will be ASG’s new program officer. He is the National Sea Grant–NMFS fisheries liaison. ASG passed the performance review with flying colors. Paula will get the report from that in winter or spring. Details of the 2016 Sea Grant budget have not been resolved. Aquaculture is on the forefront. ASG has one of the grants. STEM education funding is in and out of the budget for Sea Grant reauthorization in DC. The President’s figure for the Sea Grant budget is $68.5 million, while the Senate’s figure is $72.8 million and the House is $64.8. Budget-wise National Sea Grant is doing quite well, building on former allocations. Paula Cullenberg and Jeff Stephan: Thank you, Mike, for your good work for ASG over the years. Sustaining fisheries and healthy ecosystems: Alaska Sea Grant–funded project Recovering Humpback Whales and the Future of Alaska’s Hatcheries, Fisheries and Coastal Communities – Ellen Chenoweth, Graduate Student Graduate student, Ellen Chenoweth, is working with PI Jan Straley on the ASG funded research project “Recovering Humpback Whales and the Future of Alaska’s Hatcheries, Fisheries and Coastal Communities.”

Good news. Humpbacks have shown a recovery since the whaling activities in the 20th century. In 2006, the population was estimated at 21,000 with an increase of 5-7% per year. NOAA Fisheries wants to delist most regions of humpbacks from the endangered species list. Problem. Humpbacks have figured out when and where to feed on hatchery fish. Hatcheries in Southeast Alaska have a strong economic impact in Alaska. It is a $171 million industry that supports 971 jobs. It contributes $47K to the sport fishery. One recent year, Hidden Falls Hatchery on Baranoff Island, had $4-5 million in “missing fish”.


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ASG funded a field team to have researchers on site 24 hours a day to observe two sights—Hidden Falls, a hatchery, and Takatz a release sight. Whales would wake us up in the morning, feed next to us and rock our boat. The feeding was more frequent than initially realized. Whales were using bubble nets, lunging at the surface, and feeding more frequently than realized. We identified 4 female whales that were salmon feeding. And there were 24 whales identified that were not feeding on salmon but probably feeding on herring in the bay. Conclusions. Hatchery feeding is more common than thought because whales were there all hours of the days, but most whales are not feeding on hatchery salmon. The takeaway is that hatchery is not a great place for whales to feed. There isn’t a huge incentive for other whales to join the chase for salmon. Based on foraging efficiency, it seems like a negative benefit for the whales feeding on hatchery fish. The amount of energy expelled compared to the amount of energy gained is a net loss. Ellen has done outreach around the project as well. She went to a summer camp in St Paul Island and made phylogenetic tree mobile. It’s 8 feet wide and has 40 animals. Additionally, she hosted the Sitka Whalefest Filmfest and gave a public friendly talk to 180 people. For school science classes she brought in dried hatchery fish and burn them to measure the energy in each fish. As part of the MESAS program, she wrote an article for AFS and did a radio story and podcast series. AC input: Emerging issues Henry Mitchell: The salmon fisheries are impacted by the cost of transportation. It costs coastal villages money to operate canneries, etc. and fishing for salmon in some regions may no longer be sustainable. Can we as a group assist in getting a better situation for our fishermen, they may go out of business without a good price for fish—volume won’t make it for all these people.

● Paula Cullenberg: FishBiz will help commercial fishermen finances. There is enough people in US to eat the salmon produced in AK. We used to have a business specialist as part of the faculty.

Holly Kent: Along the East and West coast there are coastal acidification networks (CANs), we are trying to bring one to AK. Jeff Stephan: Kodiak had a dearth of rain this year. We didn’t get escapement like we needed because there wasn’t enough water to fill the rivers and streams to allow the salmon to spawn. We haven’t had snow or cold weather so eggs and streams are impacted by that too.

● Torie Baker: When does an anomaly predict or start a trend? We experienced a similar situation in Cordova this year—an anomaly season in Cordova.

Vera Metcalf: Walrus might be listed as an ESA in 2017. What are the potential impacts of that listing? It could result in a loss of subsistence resources. We had 4 harvest disasters due to climate this year. We are requesting the SOA to come up with a task force to address and help communities come up with adaptation and resiliency plans.


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Steve Davis: Marine vessel traffic is an important issue. This past summer I was the point person for NMFS, Shell and all related to oil and gas. There were conditions placed on the oil and gas permits. We wanted the to have equipment on site and close by in case of a spill. Our experience is that we aren’t as prepared as we think we are to deal with spills on water. If US oil and gas industry isn’t in Chuchi there is an increasing number of vessels passing through that area; we will see more cruise ships, Russian oil tankers, and research vessels. Coast Guard is trying to come up with shipping lanes for that area to reduce chance of on-sea collisions and ships running aground. U.S. is doing what it can to improve its charting. Russian side still needs work. Taxpayers may have to say it is a priority. Amy Homan: SG has role in preparedness and response due to our relationships with people. Keep asking yourself about your role. With last year’s snow pack we knew that we would have a big fire season. Fire science communities are taking a look at that. As a parallel how do we manage fisheries given the changing climate. NOAA’s polar satellite system is new. New instruments allow us to see day and night vessels, the ocean color, HABs, etc. A world regional climate center meeting in Geneva this week will set up a circumpolar collection of the different countries to collect data on climate with our interests in mind. Jeff Stephan: Some actions going through the Council process that will worsen the consolidation issues. Graying of the Fleet is a phenomenon but partially because fishing is costly now. Substance Abuse probably impacts the fishing workforce too. I’m worried about ADF&G budget; hearing about not hiring open positions and people leaving for hiring paying jobs. Earthquake insurance is harder to get now and coastal AK is susceptible to whenever the next big one will be. Jennifer Lincoln: From NIOSH’s point-of-view on the greying of the workforce, we should focus on the needs of workers as they age. Items incorporated into the workforce will benefit a worker across all age groups. I was hoping there would be some information about what is needed to allow fishermen to work longer and remain safe and efficient on their vessels. People will continue working so that is an area to keep in mind. Another opportunity is SG’s role is to partner with the fleets when they start developing safety compliance training plans. Eric Volk: Mariculture and aquaculture are important for the economy in our state. However, Alaska doesn’t have a comprehensive plan for doing business. Right now, we look at applications on a case-by-case basis, identify the risks, and negotiate a solution. The desire to expand is outgrowing our ability to keep up. We have a lot more infrastructure in the salmon world, but we don’t have much in the invertebrate or seaweed realm. We need to know if it is wise to bring in invertebrates. SG’s role could be to assemble the meeting of industry, state agency, and University members to look at a 10-20 year outlook and develop a comprehensive plan. In our constitution we are committed to the wild stocks first. If you understand the endeavor you can help it succeed.


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Paula Cullenberg: As ADF&G leadership changes, we need to reintroduce ASG to the agency. Developing a framework model is an appropriate role for ASG. Perspectives on Alaska Sea Grant’s role in the state and within UAF; news from UAF and SFOS – Mike Powers, Chancellor, UAF; and Joan Braddock, Dean, SFOS Joan Braddock: I’ve been Interim Dean for SFOS for the past year. There are a lot of great people in the school. SFOS is diverse in what we do, due to a broad mission and ASG and MAP we have a great spread across the state. We have 70 undergraduate students, 135 graduate students, and 60 faculty. The Sikuliaq may become another “unit” in the school. Just this year we have accepted the ship and gone into operation mode. Marilyn has been working with us on outreach because the ship is a platform for science and science education. Other units. Institute of Marine Science includes oceanography and marine biologists combined with the Fisheries program. In other institutions Fisheries is combined with Wildlife Biology. We have one of the highest undergraduate retention rates and job placement after graduation. We’ve done fairly well serving students across the state, but we want to improve. The goal was to have 100 students in the fisheries division. Diversity in the school is a challenge and a strength. There are good examples of where people work well across the school. The new dean, Brad Moran, will arrive January 11. He has a lot of experience, a background in chemical oceanography, and is in Rhode Island now. He worked to develop the Blue MBA. He has experience at NSF, Science and Technology for the White House, and has done a lot of research to get familiar with the new job as SFOS Dean. The state budget is not good. It has an impact on the school. We are preparing for a 12% state cut in FY16. If it’s less critical it’s on the list to look to cut. One thing not in our favor is the lack of a strategic plan--that would help us navigate the future. There was discussion from the former Chancellor at UAF and UAA to transfer the Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center facility to UAA. There was very little worked out about what that meant and what SFOS activities would still happen there. I visited recently and recommended to UA Administration hold off and delay the decision so more options could be put on the table and explored. UA President Johnson sent notice today that he is putting the transfer on hold and asking Dan White to lead a team from UAF and UAA to look at the options including those presented from the community of Kodiak. UAA under the initial transfer idea could use the building for radically different purposes which would impact the seafood processing facility. Chancellors have until March 1 to negotiate a plan. If not, the president will be the tie breaker. It is a unique facility and would be a shame to lose it without some thought. UAA could more easily use it to generate tuition rather than the research funding not generating enough indirect recovery. I’ve enjoyed working with the Sea Grant Program. It was neat to see the site review point out the Advisory Committee as a best management practice. I appreciate the fact that SG has helped SFOS communicate in a broader sense; we’ve worked with SG for the past 8 months to communicate SFOS news.


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It’s always scary in a time of short resources, because not replacing positions is a mechanism to save money. You are a diverse group with a lot of perspectives and that is the value of your group. Thank you for your service to this group and the school. Jeff Stephan: Thank you for your work as interim. Mike Powers: I’ve been on the job since September 1. I have a 30 year history in Fairbanks. I am aware of ASGAC and the distinguished group. Thank you for the time you have given to UAF and SFOS. Few observations from my time at UAF so far. I spent 4 years as a regent. The building of the Sikuliaq was a major milestone. I’m also aware of the partnership with NOAA. I’m a fairly new person to the research side of the University. Our mission is to serve the communities in AK and I know how dependent we are on marine and coastal resources. I recognize the challenges that are impacting our future. I see the MAP as a key link to Alaskans and how the University can stay in touch with emerging climate change issues. We are reexamining the priorities as another state budget cut is anticipated this next fiscal year. I would ask ASG and MAP to help us define those priorities and identify funds outside. I regret not being able to attend today in person. And sincerely thank you for your service. Jeff Stephan: [A motion was made by John Shively, seconded by Dan O’Hara, and was passed for the ASGAC to write a letter to the UA president, with a copy to the UAF chancellor and provost, and the SFOS dean, in these times of budget cuts. The letter will promote ASG, and say how accomplished and effective they are.] Tuesday, November 17 Welcome and goals for the day – Jeff Stephan, Chair Supporting healthy ecosystems: Alaska Sea Grant–funded project An Expert and Community Supported Decision Tool for Managing Marine Invasive Species – Toby Schwörer, co-PI, UAA Institute of Social and Economic Research (ISER) Ginny Eckert: ASG issued an “extra” RFP last year for a small amount of money for coastal resilience. ASG undertook a fast but thorough review for projects and awarded money for four projects. Toby Schwörer is one of those grantees. Toby Schwörer: An Expert and Community Supported Decision Tool for Managing Marine Invasive Species is the project title. Scientists have noticed a rise in an invasive hybrid elodea in Alaska, which could threaten salmon-dependent communities. We don’t know if it is bad for salmon; we are creating a model to determine risk and help make decisions. At the end of this talk everyone should be able to identify elodea—see the 3 leaves. Where do humans distribute elodea? How do we tie it to damage assessment? We are forming a decision framework. What should you do if you find elodea? Don’t rip it out—take a picture and call ADFG. It is on quarantine under state ruling. Elodea reproduces asexually, and can grow in water 30 feet deep or less. It photosynthesizes under the ice. It is a threat to biodiversity. It grows 10 times more


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densely that any native aquatic vegetation. It impedes recreation, gets tangled in boat propellers, is a threat to floatplane safety, and even lowers home values. At Lake Hood, the busiest seaplane site in Anchorage, it is a big problem—a risk. In the 1980s it was first discovered in Eyak Lake and was ignored. In 2010 it was growing in the Chena River in the Interior. Every year after that has spread a lot.

There is a lack of data on elodea. There is a published paper on its effect on salmon in California, where elodea is native. But this does not apply to Alaska. We are asking how we can use scientific data in a decision framework. How is elodea being distributed? We are developing a risk map. What are the economic damages? Should we eradicate elodea in the Copper River basin? This is very costly so we need a framework to help make the decision. There is a lack of evidence, it is difficult to detect, it is costly to eradicate, we need to evaluate all management strategies. How do we deal with uncertainty? Arbitrary? Status quo? Optimistically? Avoid it? Pessimistically? Eradicate it? Risk = Probability x Consequence. How to determine probability? Answer: do research or talk to experts. I surveyed experts. There is some salmon information out there. I asked experts if they thought an elodea infested habitat would support salmon. Now to the consequences. Airboats and floatplanes are vectors. I interviewed pilots about lake landings and got estimated damages in the Copper River delta and elsewhere.

How to make decisions. The eradication methods should be compared. The herbicide Fluridone was used in Kenai Lakes and at very low concentrations it kills this hybrid elodea. But it is very expensive. Suction dredging is another possible method.

Decision analysis for invasive species. A Decision Tree is used, with Management Actions, Outcomes, Economic values. It provides the value of further information gathering, for example how valuable is it to go out and get more information?

Conclusion: What are the advantages of decision analysis using expert opinion? Expert opinion helps account for some uncertainty. It justifies taking or not taking an action. It formalizes the decision process. It is Ideal for rapid response. It is structured and transparent. Thank you to UAF ASG, USGS, USFWS, and UAA ISER. Growing environmental literacy through the Alaska Seas and Watersheds schools program – Marilyn Sigman, Alaska Sea Grant Marine Education Specialist Alaska Seas and Watersheds. We recently renamed it. We got lots of helpful guidance from the AC last year. We have put a lot of energy into our K-!2 mandate. Teacher by teacher, school by school, district by district. This started with Sea Week 1.0. Parents in Juneau created Sea Week; it was sanctioned by the Alaska Dept. of Education and was adopted statewide. They took field trips every year, held teacher workshops, gave resources to teachers. It was very popular. ASG then published the curriculum into books. Belle Mickelson was the Sea Week director. Sea Week 2.0—in 2009 we created the online K-8 curriculum to align with state standards, incorporating science, math, social studies, and arts. Sea Week 3.0—we are getting Alaska schools to use the curriculum. There is a new generation of teachers who are burdened with test taking and other demands. It is hard for them to get out on field trips. We are investing in teachers, holding professional development workshops for university credit that counts toward


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certification and salary grade for the teachers. It was Paula’s idea to give schools $10K grants over 3 years. That could go toward field trips, paying teachers, buying supplies, transportation. Last year we worked with Dillingham, Anchorage, and Yakutat with the goal to make it statewide. The training shows teachers how to use a river to bring language arts and science together. Elementary teachers are short on science training. We started with Dillingham. The old model is to meet with teachers and leave. The new model is to meet with the whole staff, and offer grants. We enable teachers to be leaders and decide what they want for their school. They can take an inservice for 1-2 credits. Implementation is required. Teachers get 2 credits for being on the planning team. Teachers engage in curriculum activities. In Dillingham we went to a UAF lab where isopods are a research focus. The schools had a National Geographic curriculum, which is not Alaskan. We started planning right in the workshop. A second grade teacher has been there 28 years and mentored younger ones. She remembered Sea Week. In Yakutat the size of the school is decreasing.

The Anchorage school district is huge. The STEM department was revising the curriculum and science kits. The ASG grant to the schools got me into the revising group. Alaska Geographic wanted to teach about watersheds in the school. So in May 2015 we piloted the watershed education curriculum and field trips in the Chester Creek watershed. It was successful. Next time we will do it in 8 schools with more partners and some college students. The science kits will be used. It was a small investment. We are working now with Petersburg where there is a nice trail at the school, and in Juneau and Cordova—2 districts that are revising their science curriculum. In Unalaska they added Alaska Sea and Watersheds to the curriculum last year.

Lessons learned: How to evaluate the impact? Jobs? We worked with professional evaluators, Parsons Insights, through the program Educator to Educator. ANROE (Alaska Natural Resource and Outdoor Education) used Dillingham as a project to evaluate. They used a pre-inservice survey and post-inservice survey. Results: $10K was sufficient to support change, the project had administrator buy-in, additional funding was usually available, a few experienced teachers mentored younger teachers. They valued learning. The teachers said training increased knowledge, the liked the Alaska specific aspect, they liked the local focus, and the university credit was a good incentive. What could they have done better? Acknowledge that the schools have their own priorities, one size does not fit all, leadership of teachers and administrators will change the system, and schools have a lot of partners.

Sea Week 4.0—Alaska Seas and Watersheds. Get Your Feet Wet is a 2016 online education event that will have more school grants, align with state standards, and have K-12 links to workforce development. Possibly a 9-12 curriculum would be developed as part of a workforce development effort. Strengthening economic resilience: Supporting shellfish aquaculture in Alaska, FishBiz, and the new Alaska Manufacturing Extension Partnership – Torie Baker, Marine Advisory Agent, Cordova; Sunny Rice, Marine Advisory Agent, Petersburg; and Erik O’Brien, Southwest Alaska Municipal Conference Torie Baker: At Pacific Marine Expo this week we will roll out the FishBiz website. We have been working with fishermen and the business aspects of fishing. In ASG Terry Johnson and


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former agents Craig Weise and Glenn Haight have done a lot of fishing business education products and training. Glenn coined the term FishBiz 10 years ago. The former website was languishing. With some funding from CoBank we revamped the website. We met with fisheries people to get advice and they recommended online information. Alaska village residents all use cell phones now so they can access it. The goals for the website were easy access, scalable on all platforms, podcasts, customizable spreadsheets, and links to material outside of ASG. The new FishBiz site has data on all managed Alaska fisheries. We used the approach used when a fisherman with a question walks into our office. We made sure information is not more than 3 clicks away. Fishermen can determine the value of their fishery, figure out whether the endeavor will pan out, learn how to get financing, and tend to annual money matters. We built in tracking, used beta testers—fishermen, loan officers, lenders, extension agents, and had everything edited and proofread.

The University of Minnesota has been a longtime ASG partner because of their agriculture business expertise. They are upgrading some spreadsheets and they will link to FishBiz. Fishermen in other states look to ASG for business information. Erik O’Brien: ASG is a collaborator in the Manufacturing Extension Partnership (MEP) five-year agreement, recently awarded to the Southwest Alaska Municipal Conference (SWAMC). MEP is supported by the National Institute of Standards and Technology in the US Department of Commerce, and focuses on the needs of US small to midsize manufacturers. MEP provides companies with services and access to resources to enhance growth, improve productivity, reduce costs, and expand capacity. SWAMC will manage the Alaska MEP. Initial partners are ASG, the Southeast Conference, and the Anchorage Economic Development Corporation. MEPs are now in all 50 states. There are challenges to setting up a MEP in Alaska with distances and transportation. We will be audited each year as are all MEPs. The MEP will welcome new initiatives like mariculture and find more partners.

● Paula Cullenberg: This is the first time a Sea Grant program has been in a MEP. It has the potential to be extended 5 more years. We are the only MEP in the US focused on seafood. This brings us 5 years of salary for Chris Sannito. For the first 2 years we will continue the seafood processor training that MAP has presented. The intention is to bring in new partners; CES may be interested in being a partner. New Alaska MEP industries could include crafts. There is a 1:1 match requirement. ASG is getting $150K per year, and we match with agent salaries. The cool thing is the huge national network—they support with websites, marketing, and other tools.

● Erik O’Brien: Transfer of knowledge and ideas is a big part of it. Last week we found out that the manufacturing component will be incorporated into the Alaska state strategic plan. We will be looking to private businesses. CDQs have approached us. They target processors, put on workshops. MEP may be able to help. Paula and I are going to the Alaska Shellfish Growers Association meeting and workshop on seaweed mariculture in Ketchikan this week.

Paula Cullenberg: On the ASG side Quentin Fong will be the lead person for the Alaska MEP. Quentin and Erik will attend an Alaska MEP kickoff meeting in Maryland, in January. This is a federal program so there is lots of reporting. The headquarters office contacts all the companies involved and asks about their value. The Alaska MEP is getting about $500K per year.


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For ASG’s new NOAA Aquaculture 2-year grant, Gary Freitag is the principal investigator, with three subcontractors: OceansAlaska, the Pacific Shellfish Institute, and Carter Newell, a Maine shellfish grower. We are attempting to address some issues about why the Alaska mariculture industry is not moving forward very fast. Barbara Blake of the Lt. Governor’s office reports that there is a new advisory committee on mariculture at the state level. I will participate in this.

We will ask the AC to help write the 2017-2020 ASG strategic plan. To get input we will hold workshops in nine communities where we have a presence, interact with our partners, conduct surveys, and get input from our staff and the AC. AC input: Alaska Sea Grant SWOT analysis and strategies for the future Group 1 facilitated by Deborah Mercy. Participants: Jeff Stephan, Pete Esquiro, Dan O’Hara, Ginny Eckert, Torie Baker, Steve Davis, Carol Kaynor, Sue Keller. What makes us unique?

● Jeff Stephan: Ability to walk in anywhere and knock on door—not threatening, work across systems (e.g., university, state). Have good entrée. Acceptability. Image is positive and acceptable.

● Steve Davis: When think of Sea Grant, think of university. Program is in communities where resources are (e.g., fish resources). People come to us in part to find out what’s going on out there. Strong, powerful connection between academic community and general population of state. From agency perspective, is very high value (we are seen as surrogate NMFS employee).

● Pete Esquiro: Re AC, have diversity along with strong and active members. We educate and inform constituents. ASG is involved in many different areas and can lead others to resources they may not even know about. Clients and stakeholders: credibility and science-based is important. We are looked to as judge of right or wrong resource management. So close to communities.

● Ginny Eckert: We bring resources to bear on problems or issues or opportunities that research can help with. Also, student focus is unique to Sea Grant. Many of our students stay in Alaska.

● Torie Baker: Are going to try and increase tracking all ASG-supported students plus Knauss and state fellows.

● Dan O’Hara: Important that SG stay within university system, because communities will come to university for information and solutions to problems.

How to improve name recognition within state.

● Steve Davis: Getting brand out, making it visible—AC could probably do more to help with that. Example: Matt’s business card doesn’t have SG logo on it. Steve encourages acknowledge of SG funding whenever researchers get support from SG. Dave Witherell’s comment re: business cards shows have more work to do. ([Magnetic?] bumper sticker for cars.) Thinks stickers are great idea and should send them out for liberal use.

● Ginny Eckert: We should send stickers out to all researchers and students.


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● Deborah/Ginny: Create business cards for grad students, state fellows. ● Dan O’Hara: Sea Grant not part of average Alaskan’s vocabulary. ● Deborah Mercy: PSAs might be way to get name out there more often. ● Dan O’Hara: Agrees is really good idea. ● Steve Davis: Have stickers and other things at PME. Marine foam keychains, folks grab

them and then go back to workplace and have SG trinkets hanging from boat ignition. ● Jeff Stephan: In agreement for fellows, notes that would hope SG fellow would be issued

card that carries SG logo if host wants to make their own, or have us make cards. Funding innovations.

● Steve Davis: Perhaps is opportunity soon to approach Rasmuson again (Paula and Jeff) to rekindle investment in youth?

● Torie Baker: Rasmuson good to check on for state fellowship? ● Deborah Mercy: Has to be new project, new framework. ● Ginny Eckert: Think about endowments instead of straight donations. E.g., DIPAC gave

money to university, which uses interest to pay for grad student. Was really successful. Maybe go to Rasmuson and ask to endow state fellowship program. Donation of a million dollars would allow us to fund two fellows for perpetuity. Get advice on how to do it, amount to ask for, etc. DIPAC set up external review to pick grad student, but has input on research priorities.

● Steve Davis: With declining state funds, Rasmuson is substantial, will have larger role throughout state as state revenues drop.

● Dan O’Hara: The ten regional corporations might be possibilities. Carrot to offer them: looking for corporate leaders or students to get into fisheries, or mid-level management in processing plants. CDQs would be possible donors, BBNC as well. ASG needs to get connected to Western Alaska CDQs.

● Deborah Mercy: Potential stability problem with working with corporations, but maybe endowment or other ongoing agreement would provide stability.

● Ginny Eckert: Fish processing industry: Can write off donations to university. She hears they are the ones who have money in state. Other fundraising efforts have focused on tapping them. Can we tap into increased potential there?

● Dan O’Hara: Get emotional part going there, might get some bucks from PSPA and other processor associations.

Strategic planning.

● Steve Davis: Concept sounds reasonable to get input from communities. Acknowledges needs to be strong linkage between ASG and NSG and NOAA strategic plans. Linkages are layers of onion. Aren’t going to get away from linkages

● Ginny Eckert: The issue with NSG is no director. Could be up to a year before new director gets into place. Wondered should they hold off on strategic plan? Much discussion at SGA. Decision was to move forward. Some expectation that because Kola is interim, may not be big changes. No motion until meeting last week; agreed to move forward at state level and tweak as need be.


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● Steve Davis: Layers because budget from OMB has to be linked to plan. Since last time, NMFS Alaska Region has just completed its strategic plan for next 5 years. Is another doc we can look at and make sure are not missing anything in our plan that appears in NMFS regional plan for next 5 years. Had to be linked with national NMFS plan and NOAA plan, etc. https://alaskafisheries.noaa.gov/omi/NmfsAKRStrategicPlan2015.pdf

● Dan O’Hara: Strategic plan is measuring system. Is delighted to see strategic plan. Get to advisory board to look at before finalizing.

● Jeff Stepahn: Mentioned facilitator for one of last plans. Staff, faculty and AC succession. AC filled out form as directed.

● Dan O’Hara: Pete, Dan, Vera are expensive to get here to meeting. If want diverse advice, look at more geographical representation, although that’s also more expensive.

● Steve Davis: retiring next summer. (Is going to beat Jim out the door.) Says that NMFS is seat that we’d want to fill, but Steve would be willing to participate in addition as emeritus.

Group 2 facilitated by Adie Callahan. Participants: Vera Metcalf, Peggy Cowan, Bill Streever, Sunny Rice, Marilyn Sigman, and Eric Volk. What makes us unique?

● Our ties to the communities ● Partnership between federal and state organizations ● Longevity of the faculty, staff, PIs, students, and AC members

How to improve name recognition within state

● Get Brad Moran to a coastal community; Cordova would be good ● Staff to attend a marine mammal commission meeting in Anchorage to see the

importance of a MAP faculty’s [Gay] community presence ● Develop a case study of a few selected instances of longevity in the SG program; the 1

pager could be used in DC too ● Write a letter to UA leadership and state legislature in support of maintaining a funding

base; reach out to communities to ask legislature for SG support [top down and bottom up campaign]; focus on economic value/ROI of the program

● Target high visibility partners (i.e. Alaska SeaLife Center has a lot of visitor traffic; Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute)

● Ask Jack Frost to do a radio bit about ASG and work in the seafood industry [maybe highlight AKCRRAB]

Funding innovations

● Be comfortable on soft money ● Continue cost-sharing positions ● With oil and gas layoffs, there will be people in need of work ● Access volunteer sources; people are excited to volunteer for the marine mammal

stranding network and diving opportunities ● Rely on/ask for help from Friends of ASG and emeritus AC members


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● CDQ groups are writing the state checks for taxes, capitalize on the incentive for them to write the check to a non-profit instead

Strategic planning

● Evaluate strategies/actions annually ● When writing the plan prioritize the actions for year 1, 2, 3, and 4 ● Be cautious in the community meetings to not ask the community what it needs without

being able to deliver ○ take some time to manage expectations ○ structure the meetings so they are similar ○ use the meetings as an opportunity to educate the communities on ASG’s

statewide role and mission

AC succession planning See matrices. Group 3 What makes us unique

● Who else focuses on people and their relationship with the sea ● Training and resources ● Ability to respond quickly ● Everyone’s a specialist and a generalist (vertically diversified; fishing, engineering; wide

range) ● Based on and supported by small communities ● Communication across the state ● Provides a resource to other organizations and the rest of the University ● Research lends to practical uses ● Non-advocacy, trusted resource ● First stop for questions

How we can improve our name recognition

● Logo and name on all products ● Need shorter tag line ● Relationship with the media; media training is important [Earned Media], become a

resource for the media ● Feed stories to local papers ● Give talks when in communities ● Speak on public radio ● Spread FaceBook page ● Attend Council meetings

Funding innovations

● Shared positions ● Pick-Click-Give


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● Agency co-sponsor Strategic planning

● Have an outside evaluator (write them into your grant) ○ simple survey ○ incentive

● Hire facilitator ● Make it short ● Include an annual plan ● Have a work matrix in the beginning

Meeting Wrap-up and Advisory Committee action items – Jeff Stephan, Chair Ideas offered by committee members for AC letter of support to UA president, copy to chancellor, provost, and new SFOS dean:

● Start out with writing in support of Alaska Sea Grant, end with signatures of all members. ● ASG has value to the University and the state of Alaska ● Economic value that ASG brings to table, community presence. ● Federal-campus-community connectivity. ● Writing as committee because concerned budget cuts would affect small and very

effective organization. ● Mention the value of the resource we work with and primary food security locally, state,

and nationally ● We advance the development of new industries, state workforce, and future leaders ● How valuable ASG is in responding to problems facing state of Alaska; e.g., erosion

affecting communities. Give other situations people could associate with personally. ● Mention Kodiak Seafood and Marine Science Center and that it is vulnerable to budget

cuts. ● Value to state, community, environment. ● ASG focused on Alaska’s most valuable renewable resource and primary food security

resource. ● Societal and cultural values and commercial/subsistence values; supporting in diverse

ways. ● Advancing development of new industries or other activities (e.g., environmental

awareness, scientific awareness). ● Graduate students, FishBiz. ● Leveraging we do with state and federal dollars. ● Independent broker role. ● ASG reaches places in Alaska that university is not reaching. ● ASG is on the responding end of issues affecting communities ● “Sea Grant is where you (we) live.”


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AC comments on meeting Vera Metcalf: Enjoyed presentations, learned about invasive species. Look forward to seeing some of you in Nome. Mary Pete: Same as Vera. Would be great to have MAP agent in Bethel. Dan O’Hara: Suggests thank-you note to people leaving AC. Jennifer Lincoln: Her first meeting, honored to be asked. Appreciated way meeting was structured; little bit of science, perspective on projects, appreciated giving year in review by looking at press releases. Reading assignments made her nervous about having a different background than others and having hard time commenting, but that didn’t happen. Steve Borell: Liked format, thought it was quite beneficial. Two pieces not mentioned: Jack Frost on radio is always coming up with little tidbits and comments. Should have him talk about things like little crabs in ocean. Do CDQs know how they can dedicate some of their tax money to university? Costs a little more but can dedicate to program. Talk to them about allocating some of those to ASG. Pete Esquiro: Take a look at agenda, and as you put people in slots, try to keep people within time constraints. Shorten up talks and give more opportunity to move around a little. Holly Kent: Appreciated opportunity to attend, learned a lot more about ASG. Jeff Stephan: Regarding agenda, Paula and Jeff worked on it, but should probably send out reminder and reiterate to send ideas. Compliments Paula and staff on agenda. In last couple years, retreat (annual meeting) came before meeting, and it sounded like we devoted some time to preparing for this AC meeting, and it shows. Great staff. Proud to be part of it. Likes monthly reports; reminds him of everything we’re doing, gives him ideas. Presentations were good. Have wrestled with that over years. For next time, see if can cover broad mix including subsistence. Bringing in PIs to discuss was very good. Eric Volk: His second year as alternate. Glad to do it. Like working in groups of people like this, participating in these sorts of efforts. Is left thinking how to strengthen connections between ASG and Fish & Game. Strong on local level but not as strong at institutional level. Try to get audience with directors of divisions; many are new, which means good opportunity, Eric happy to help out. Steve Davis: Thanks to all. Look forward to these meetings. Think length is right. Enjoy presentations, mind gets stimulated, how science gets applied, carries over into working group. Is about Steve’s 20th meeting. (Years ago, gave SG vest to Jim Balsiger, but is keeping the jacket!) Is retiring next summer, so need to have conversation with Jim about who to replace him because NMFS needs to be involved. Hope to be involved in some capacity going forward.


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Dave Witherell: Appreciate balance of latest research, education, MAP activities, plus breakout groups that allow us to bring our expertise back to you. Bob Winfree: Like mix of program updates, research reports. Am reminded that he came on as alternate two regional directors and two ASG directors ago. To whatever extent can be beneficial to ASG as we go forward, would like to be.

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