Puaʻala Pascua is a biodiversity scientist at the American Museum of Natural History's Center for Biodiversity and Conservation (CBC), where she specializes in biocultural approaches to natural resource management.  In her current position, Puaʻala draws from a combination of interdisciplinary training, professional experience, and a culturally grounded upbringing to explore the junction of research, policy, and resource management in place-based and indigenous communities across the Pacific and around the world.

Born and raised on the island of Oʻahu and currently based on Hawai'i Island, Puaʻala is of Native Hawaiian descent and holds a master's degree in Natural Resource Management from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa, as well as bachelor degrees in Hawaiian Studies and Marine Science from the University of Hawai'i at Hilo.

Pua'ala was a 2016 Knauss Marine Policy Fellow with NOAA Fisheries' National Saltwater Recreational Fisheries Initiative, where she continued to lead and support U.S. recreational and non-commercial fisheries policy and management efforts until joining the CBC in late 2017.  She considers the Knauss Fellowship a tremendously valuable experience and would highly recommend it to any prospective applicants.