Sarah Myhre

Last updated

Sarah Myhre
Born
Washington, US
NationalityAmerican
Alma mater University of California, Davis
University of Western Washington
Known forClimate science and activism
Scientific career
FieldsClimate science, marine ecology

Sarah Myhre is a climate scientist who uses geology to analyze ancient marine ecosystems and how they reacted to sudden climate changes in Earth's history. [1] She is also an outspoken advocate for both social justice and science, emphasizing that climate change must be tackled alongside misogyny and social injustice. Myhre strives to help those most affected by climate change, but who lack the platform to speak. [1] [2] [3] Myhre is also a founding board member of 500 Women Scientists, an organization that aims to make science more inclusive. [4]

Contents

Early life and education

Myhre is a fifth-generation Washingtonian who grew up in Seattle. [3] [1] She immersed herself in the outdoors throughout her childhood, whether it was skiing on the North Cascades mountains or exploring tide pools with her marine scientist aunt. [5] [1] Myhre comes from a family with many engineers. [1]

Myhre attended Western Washington University, receiving a BS in biology. [6] During her undergraduate years, she studied marine ecology. She performed field work in Costa Rica, monitoring the recovery of a sea urchin species that helps coral reefs thrive. Her later undergraduate studies took her to Bermuda and Hawaii where she worked for NOAA's Coral Reef Ecosystem Program. [1] Myhre says that her studies in Costa Rica brough to light the unique obstacles that women face when trying to succeed in science. She said she experienced "sexual assault, physical abuse, and institutional negligence". [1]

In 2013, Myhre was a Robert and Patricia Switzer Foundation Fellow studying climate change and coastal and marine conservation. [7] In 2014, Myhre completed a PhD in ecology from University of California, Davis. [7] Her new research area combined her previous interests; she studied geology to analyze ancient marine ecosystems and how they reacted to sudden climate changes in Earth's history. [1]

Career

From 2015 to 2019, Myhre was a research associate at the University of Washington's School of Oceanography where she continued her analysis of how marine life adjusted to past abrupt climate changes. [3]

Myhre was also a Kavli Fellow with the National Academy of Science and a senior fellow in Project Drawdown at the Breakthrough Institute, [8] a research center that focuses on environmental solutions. [9]

Myhre is now widely published in marine ecology and climate change. [1] A large body of her work concerns the ecosystems off the coast of California, where she takes a palaeoecological approach to understanding Earth's history of climate change. For example, she uses samples of Earth's sediment, as well as marine fossils to piece together when certain changes occurred in the climate and affected marine organisms. [10]

Since 2022, Myhre has worked as the program director for climate advocacy and democracy reform at the Glaser Progress Foundation. [11] She believes that "a healthy and safe community is a non-partisan goal", regardless of whether the threat is climate change or respiratory viruses. [11]

In 2018, Myhre founded a startup, the Rowan Institute, [6] which aimed to make an impact on the world through scientific leadership. [8] Additionally, she is a founding board member of 500 Women Scientists [1] where she advocates for social justice and science. [3]

Honors and awards

Myhre was named one of the most influential Seattleites of 2017 by Seattle Magazine. [3] She was also listed in 2018 as one of "30 More Women Who Run [Seattle]" by Seattle Met. [12]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine biology</span> Scientific study of organisms that live in the ocean

Marine biology is the scientific study of the biology of marine life, organisms in the sea. Given that in biology many phyla, families and genera have some species that live in the sea and others that live on land, marine biology classifies species based on the environment rather than on taxonomy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Coral reef</span> Outcrop of rock in the sea formed by the growth and deposit of stony coral skeletons

A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory</span> U.S. Government research laboratory

The Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), a federal research laboratory, is part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration's (NOAA) Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research (OAR), located in Miami in the United States. AOML's research spans tropical cyclone and hurricanes, coastal ecosystems, oceans and human health, climate studies, global carbon systems, and ocean observations. It is one of seven NOAA Research Laboratories (RLs).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marine ecosystem</span> Ecosystem in saltwater environment

Marine ecosystems are the largest of Earth's aquatic ecosystems and exist in waters that have a high salt content. These systems contrast with freshwater ecosystems, which have a lower salt content. Marine waters cover more than 70% of the surface of the Earth and account for more than 97% of Earth's water supply and 90% of habitable space on Earth. Seawater has an average salinity of 35 parts per thousand of water. Actual salinity varies among different marine ecosystems. Marine ecosystems can be divided into many zones depending upon water depth and shoreline features. The oceanic zone is the vast open part of the ocean where animals such as whales, sharks, and tuna live. The benthic zone consists of substrates below water where many invertebrates live. The intertidal zone is the area between high and low tides. Other near-shore (neritic) zones can include mudflats, seagrass meadows, mangroves, rocky intertidal systems, salt marshes, coral reefs, lagoons. In the deep water, hydrothermal vents may occur where chemosynthetic sulfur bacteria form the base of the food web.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Earthwatch Institute</span> Scientific field research institute

Earthwatch Institute is an international environmental charity. It was founded in 1971 as Educational Expeditions International by Bob Citron and Clarence Truesdale. Earthwatch Institute supports Ph.D. researchers internationally and conducts over 100,000 hours of research annually. Using the Citizen Science methodology, Earthwatch's mission statement is "to engage people worldwide in scientific field research and education to promote the understanding and action necessary for a sustainable environment." As such, it is one of the global underwriters of scientific field research in archaeology, paleontology, marine life, biodiversity, ecosystems and wildlife. For over forty years, Earthwatch has raised funds to recruit individuals, students, teachers, and corporate fellows to participate in critical field research to understand nature's response to accelerating global change.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hotspot Ecosystem Research and Man's Impact On European Seas</span> International multidisciplinary project that studies deep-sea ecosystems

Hotspot Ecosystem Research and Man's Impact On European Seas (HERMIONE) is an international multidisciplinary project, started in April 2009, that studies deep-sea ecosystems. HERMIONE scientists study the distribution of hotspot ecosystems, how they function and how they interconnect, partially in the context of how these ecosystems are being affected by climate change and impacted by humans through overfishing, resource extraction, seabed installations and pollution. Major aims of the project are to understand how humans are affecting the deep-sea environment and to provide policy makers with accurate scientific information, enabling effective management strategies to protect deep sea ecosystems. The HERMIONE project is funded by the European Commission's Seventh Framework Programme, and is the successor to the HERMES project, which concluded in March 2009.


The Leibniz-Zentrum für Marine Tropenforschung (ZMT) in Bremen is a German institute for research and developments for tropical and subtropical coastal areas and ecosystems.

Les Kaufman is an evolutionary ecologist specializing in the biology and conservation of aquatic ecosystems. He has special expertise in coral reef biology, the evolution and ecology of tropical great lakes fishes, and ecosystem-based management of marine resources.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Women in climate change</span>

The contributions of women in climate change have received increasing attention in the early 21st century. Feedback from women and the issues faced by women have been described as "imperative" by the United Nations and "critical" by the Population Reference Bureau. A report by the World Health Organization concluded that incorporating gender-based analysis would "provide more effective climate change mitigation and adaptation."

Carrie Manfrino is an American oceanographer who is president and director of research of the Central Caribbean Marine Institute. She also holds an associate professorship at Kean University. Her research concerns coral and climate change.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ayana Elizabeth Johnson</span> Marine biologist, policy expert (born 1980)

Ayana Elizabeth Johnson is a marine biologist, policy expert, and conservation strategist. She is the founder and president of Ocean Collectiv, a consulting firm that helps find ocean "conservation solutions grounded in social justice", and the founder of Urban Ocean Lab, a think tank for climate change and ocean conservation policy in coastal cities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jessica Melbourne-Thomas</span> Marine ecologist and ecosystem modeller (born 1981)

Jessica Melbourne-Thomas is a marine, Antarctic and climate change scientist with the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation, Australia. Her research focuses on climate change, its effects on the marine environment, and how to adapt and response to these changes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tessa M. Hill</span> Oceanographer, researcher

Tessa Michelle Hill is an American marine geochemist and oceanographer. She is a professor at the University of California, Davis, and a resident professor at its Bodega Marine Laboratory. She is a Fellow of the California Academy of Sciences, and in 2016 was named a Leshner Public Engagement Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science. In that year she also received the US Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Katrin Meissner (scientist)</span> Climate scientist

Katrin Juliane Meissner is a physical oceanographer and climate scientist known for climate models assessing the impact of abrupt climate change on terrestrial and marine biogeochemical cycling.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ruth Gates</span> American marine biologist (1962–2018)

Ruth Deborah Gates was the Director of the Hawaiʻi Institute of Marine Biology and the first woman to be President of the International Society for Reef Studies. Her research was dedicated to understanding coral reef ecosystems, specifically coral-algal symbiosis and the capacity for corals to acclimatize under future climate change conditions. Doctor Gates is most accredited with looking at coral biology and human-assisted coral evolution, known as super corals, as notably seen in the documentary Chasing Coral, available on Netflix.

Nyawira A. Muthiga is an African conservation zoologist who is Director of the Western Indian Ocean Marine Science Association Marine Programme in Kenya. She is a conservation scientist for the Wildlife Conservation Society.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jean-Pierre Gattuso</span> French ocean scientist (born 1958)

Jean-Pierre Gattuso is a French ocean scientist conducting research globally, from the pole to the tropics and from nearshore to the open ocean. His research addresses the biology of reef-building corals, the biogeochemistry of coastal ecosystems, and the response of marine plants, animals and ecosystems to global environmental change. He is also interested in transdisciplinary research, collaborating with social scientists to address ocean-based solutions to minimize climate change and its impacts. He is currently a CNRS Research Professor at Sorbonne University.

Danielle L. Dixson is an Associate Professor of Marine Ecology in the School of Marine Science and Policy at the University of Delaware. Her research focusses on how human-induced change to marine ecosystems impacts animal behaviour. Her work, now known to be fraudulent, was about understanding how ocean acidification affects the behaviour of coral reef fishes.

Janice Lough is a climate scientist at the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS) at James Cook University, researching climate change, and impacts of temperature and elevated CO2 on coral reefs. She was elected to the Australian Academy of Science in 2022 for her research in climate change, coral reefs, and developing high resolution environmental and growth histories from corals, particularly the Great Barrier Reef.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Kirk, Karin (May 18, 2018). "Meet scientist, feminist, activist Sarah Myhre » Yale Climate Connections". Yale Climate Connections. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  2. ↑ Andrews, Eve (June 19, 2018). "A Sea Change in Science". Grist. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 James, Sally (July 8, 2022). "Most Influential Seattleites of 2017: Citizen Scientist Sarah Myhre". Seattle Magazine. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  4. ↑ "500 Women Scientists". 500 Women Scientists. September 7, 2022. Retrieved December 2, 2023.
  5. ↑ Gibson, Caitlin (February 14, 2020). "How climate experts think about raising children who will inherit a planet in crisis". The Seattle Times. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
  6. 1 2 "LinkedIn profile" . Retrieved December 16, 2023.[ better source needed ]
  7. 1 2 "Sarah Myhre Robert & Patricia Switzer Foundation". www.switzernetwork.org. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  8. 1 2 "Sarah Myhre". The Breakthrough Institute. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  9. ↑ "About Landing". The Breakthrough Institute. Retrieved November 28, 2023.
  10. ↑ Myhre, Sarah E.; Kroeker, Kristy J.; Hill, Tessa M.; Roopnarine, Peter; Kennett, James P. (January 2017). "Community benthic paleoecology from high-resolution climate records: Mollusca and foraminifera in post-glacial environments of the California margin". Quaternary Science Reviews. 155: 179–197. Bibcode:2017QSRv..155..179M. doi: 10.1016/j.quascirev.2016.11.009 .
  11. 1 2 "Glaser press release". Glick Davis & Associates.[ dead link ]
  12. ↑ "30 More Women Who Run This City". Seattle Met. January 31, 2018. Retrieved December 14, 2023.
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