Coastal Services Center

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2005-2007 Project Summaries

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American Samoa:

Sharon Gulick is working in American Samoa with the Coral Reef Advisory Group (CRAG), a group of territorial and federal agencies that coordinates all of American Samoa's coral reef management activities. Sharon leads CRAG's Population Pressure Working Group in the development and implementation of projects. She also helps develop and participate in CRAG's education and outreach efforts, including a year-long RARE Pride Campaign focusing on protecting sea turtles and their coral reef habitats.

Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands:

Lihla Noori is working at the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) Division of Environmental Quality on the island of Rota, in cooperation with CNMI Department of Land and Natural Resources, Division of Fish and Wildlife, and the Coastal Resources Management office. Lihla is responsible for the coordination of a local action strategy project to restore the Talakhaya watershed, assisting with marine monitoring efforts, and promoting community involvement in the management of a local marine protected area (MPA). Lihla will also be conducting outreach and education projects, with a focus on building natural resource management capacity in the CNMI. She is partnering with the Northern Marianas College to develop an environmental education day camp and working with Rota High School to establish and facilitate the Rota Environmental Action and Leadership (REAL) group.

Guam:

Romina King is working at the Guam Bureau of Statistics and Plans Coastal Management Program. She is developing the Guardians of the Reef—an organization of high school students in Guam dedicated to creating sustainable solutions to local environmental issues through community action projects. The Guardians of the Reef program is an attempt to build management capacity in Guam by engaging and empowering Guam's youth as active stewards for present and future generations. Guardians of the Reef is also working to increase public awareness and understanding of environmental issues and resources.

Hawaii:

Katie Siegler is working at Hawaii’s Department of Land and Natural Resources, in the Division of Aquatic Resources. She is currently finalizing the Climate Change and Marine Disease Local Action Strategy, which outlines a plan for managing reef ecosystems with increased resistance and resilience. She will be working on all of the local action strategies, with a focus on the Land-Based Sources of Pollution LAS and the Climate Change and Marine Disease LAS. She will be involved in developing and assessing bioindicators of coral reef health, so that stressors can be identified before mortality occurs. There is also interest in establishing biocriteria for Hawaiian stony corals as a means of monitoring reef health over time.

Puerto Rico:

Maria del Mar Lopez Rivera is working at the Puerto Rico Natural Reserves and Wildlife Refuges Division (NRWRD) within the Department of Natural and Environmental Resources, where she oversees all issues pertaining to the Coral Reef Initiative and the management plan development initiative. She is working on the final management plan for the Bioluminescent Bay Natural Reserve in Vieques—probably the only pristine bioluminescent bay left in the world. Throughout the fellowship, Maria will continue to revise and prepare management plans for high-priority natural reserves.