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Management

A pile of algae-covered rocks sit in clear shallow waters, with black-striped yellow fish swimming around them

Employing traditional practices to protect coastal infrastructure and enhance nearshore fisheries in Hawaiʻi

 Research Projects 2026-2028 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Robert Toonen Graduate fellow: ʻAʻaliʻi Kelling Research Track: Island Sustainability and Resilience Coral reef ecosystems globally, including in Hawaiʻi, are facing profound degradation from multiple, interacting stressors, resulting in severe losses of coral cover, fish ...
A dense accumulation of small, yellow, wagon-wheel-like creatures float just beneath the surface of shallow waters

Characterizing the ecological impacts, environmental drivers, and physiological tolerance of invasive upside-down jellyfish (Cassiopea spp.) in Heʻeia fishpond

 Research Projects 2026-2028 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Aimee Sato Co-INVESTIGATOR: Yoshimi Rii Graduate fellow: Jasmine Reighard Research Track: Aquaculture The invasive upside-down jellyfish (Cassiopea spp.) poses a major threat to the restoration and productivity of loko iʻa (traditional Hawaiian fishponds), necessitating extensive ...
A serene pond stretches between grass and tree-lined shorelines under a blue sky with clouds

A water quality monitoring framework for traditional Hawaiian fishponds to advance nature-based solutions in aquaculture production

 Research Projects 2026-2028 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Craig Nelson Co-INVESTIGATORS: Ann Nyambega, Kirsten Oleson Graduate fellow: Kacie Kajihara Research Track: Island Sustainability and Resilience Nature-based solutions (NbS) offer adaptive, cost-effective strategies by leveraging natural processes, but their foundational roots lie in the ...
A wire mesh holds a grid of plugs with coral stubs growing on them, as a scuba diver checks on one nub

Rapid detection and management of vibrio pathogens in shellfish hatcheries and coral nurseries in Hawaiʻi

 Research Projects 2026-2028 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Marek Kirs Co-INVESTIGATOR: Claudia Häse Graduate fellow: Diksha Vijay Poojari Research Track: Aquaculture Vibriosis is a bacterial disease causing high mortality in both commercial shellfish hatcheries and coral restoration nurseries across Hawaiʻi. Disease outbreaks, primarily ...
Small, square plates, black- and white-rimmed, lie scattered across the rough, exposed surface of a stretch of rocky nearshore, with sparkling blue waters beyond

The impacts of increasing temperatures and herbivore loss on Hawaiian intertidal community structure and ecosystem function

 Research Projects 2026-2028 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Jamie McDevitt-Irwin Co-INVESTIGATORS: Nyssa Silbiger, Joanna Philippoff, Kim Kanoeʻulalani Morishige Graduate fellow: Madigan Boborci Research Track: Island Sustainability and Resilience The intertidal zone in Hawaiʻi, a vital ecosystem for endemic species and sustenance fisheries like ...
Under a crystal blue sky, a beautiful stretch of ocean, turquoise near the beach and deep blue further from shore, reaches from a foreground white sandy beach to mounds of land on the other side of the bay

Optimizing fisheries regulations for a proposed Kailua Marine Managed Area

 Research Projects 2026-2028 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Elizabeth Madin Co-INVESTIGATOR: Annie Innes-Gold Graduate fellow: Andrew Petitt Research Track: Island Sustainability and Resilience This interdisciplinary project supports community-led efforts to establish a marine managed area (MMA) in Kailua Bay, Oʻahu, a region severely ...
Medium-sized silver fish with black fins and tails are stacked neatly in a rectangular green bin

Weaving reef health perspectives of generational lawaiʻa, marine researchers, and resource managers to strengthen collaborative caretaking of Kāneʻohe Bay

 Research Projects 2026-2028 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Rachel Dacks Co-INVESTIGATORS: Kawika Winter, Sarah Woo Graduate fellow: Kammie Tavares Research Track: Island Sustainability and Resilience This project proposes a framework for integrating Indigenous and Western knowledge systems to inform sustainable coral reef fisheries ...
A dim reefscape contrasts bright healthy corals with dingy, sediment covered outcrops.

Mapping coral response to water quality stressors to improve coral restoration planning and ridge-to-reef management

 Research Projects 2024-2026 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Lillian J. Tuttle Raz Co-INVESTIGATORS: Megan J. Donahue, Kim Falinski Sea Grant Graduate Fellow: Justin Berg Research Track: Island Resilience and Sustainability Successful reef restoration requires detailed, site-specific information on the tolerances to prevailing environmental ...
Management of coastal Pandanus forests to mitigate the effects of global warming in Hawaiʻi

Management of coastal Pandanus forests to mitigate the effects of global warming in Hawaiʻi

 Research Projects 2024-2026 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Nina Rønsted Co-INVESTIGATORS: Tim Gallaher, Tamara Ticktin, Kalikoaloha Martin PI-CASC Graduate Scholar: Tehina Kahikina Research Track: Island Resilience and Sustainability Pandanus (screwpine or hala) forests historically covered large stretches of the Hawaiian coastline, protecting them from ...
A framework to elucidate dynamics for adaptive management on Hawaiian coral reefs

A framework to elucidate dynamics for adaptive management on Hawaiian coral reefs

 Research Projects 2024-2026 PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR: Lisa McManus Co-INVESTIGATORS: Yoshimi Rii, Kawika Winter, Ryan Okano, Sophia Rahnke Research Track: Island Resilience and Sustainability The global decline of coral reef environments poses complex challenges for researchers, managers, and coastal groups that depend ...
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