As a 2026 Knauss Legislative Fellow, Sarah Woo is excited to be working with Senator Brian Schatz’s office. In this role, Sarah will likely be helping focus on topics such as oceans, climate, fisheries, water, and science policy, with an emphasis on coastal conservation, site-based management, nature-based infrastructure, adaptation and resilience, and aquaculture. She will assist with appropriations, analyze ocean, climate, and science legislation, and engage stakeholder communities in Washington, D.C. and Hawaiʻi.

Sarah graduated with her bachelor’s degree from Pitzer College in 2021, studying marine science and policy, and is currently a PhD candidate in the Natural Resources and Environmental Management Department at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa. Her graduate research is based in Kāneʻohe Bay, Oʻahu, working alongside the Heʻeia National Estuarine Research Reserve (NERR) and regional generational lawaiʻa (fishers), marine scientists who work in the bay, and government and non-profit resource management agencies. Sarah’s dissertation focuses on what collaborative community-based research, management, and governance could look like for the Kāneʻohe Bay.

As someone who grew up in the Pacific Northwest’s Washington state, Sarah never thought she would find herself living and working on the East Coast’s Washington, but is excited about this opportunity to learn how the federal government works. She hopes to come back home to Hawaiʻi and apply what she learns to support community needs and navigation with federal systems. She is grateful for the opportunity to learn from Senator Schatz’s team and looks forward to getting to know the other Knauss Fellows throughout the year and beyond!