The Kachemak Bay watershed, located on the Kenai Peninsula in Alaska, encompasses several terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems that provide a range of benefits and services that are not easily quantified. This webinar highlights methods and findings from a Master’s project - advised by Dr. Julia Wondolleck - that provides insights about current ecosystem services valued in Kachemak Bay using a socio-cultural, place-based, ecosystem services framework.

In addition to hearing from the students, their partners at Kachemak Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve will share how they hope to apply their findings, and offer ideas for others interested in working with a student team in the future. Master's projects are interdisciplinary capstone experiences that enable University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability master's students to develop solutions to pressing problems faced by real-world clients. To learn more, read the team's recent report and review the process for proposing an idea for a future project.

About the Speakers:
Ellie Flaherty holds a Master of Science from the University of Michigan, School for Environment and Sustainability, with concentrations in Environmental Policy and Conservation Ecology. Ellie has experience in environmental compliance support, as well as policy and program analysis, and currently works as a Research Associate for the NEERS Science Collaborative (NSC) program at the University of Michigan’s Water Center. Ellie’s particular interests lie in marine and coastal management and collaborative resource management processes.

Kathryn Kirkpatrick holds a Master of Science in Conservation Ecology and Environmental Policy within the School for Environment and Sustainability (SEAS) at the University of Michigan. She holds a particular interest in wetland restoration, fostered by various work experiences in ecological consulting, wetland banking, and independent research. Her master's project in evaluating human and environmental well-being in Alaskan watersheds helped develop an interest in environmental policy, leading to her current position as a student assistant in the Water Resources Division at the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), formerly the MDEQ.

Trey Snow is a 2019 graduate from the School for Environment and Sustainability at University of Michigan where he received a Master’s of Science in Environmental Policy and Planning. While at the University of Michigan, Trey was a teaching assistant for environmental policy and geospatial analysis courses. Following his bachelors in economics from Bucknell University in 2016, Trey spent time across the US from the Montana backcountry with the US Forest Service to an organic farm in New England. His work on this ecosystem service master's project highlights his interest in building connections between ecological monitoring and public policies and outreach.