Conservation Between the Tides: Seagrass Meadows Past, Present, and Future

Seagrass meadows are critical ocean ecosystems that purify water, mitigate pollution, stabilize sediments, and support diverse marine life — yet they are increasingly threatened by climate change, rising temperatures, and infectious disease. Assistant Professor Aoki will spotlight seagrass ecology and conservation on the west coast and beyond, highlighting the capacity for ecological resilience, successful restoration, and the power of collaborative science to advance conservation efforts.

About the speaker: Lillian Aoki is a coastal scientist studying ecosystem dynamics and resilience in nearshore and estuarine habitats. Using field, lab, and computational methods, her work builds a cross-scale understanding of coastal ecology in a rapidly changing world. Current projects examine seagrass meadow recovery following marine heatwaves and the role of land management in carbon sequestration in tidal marshes. She earned her PhD in Environmental Sciences from the University of Virginia.

Refreshments provided. Doors open at 6:00 PM.

Sponsored by the Graduate Evolutionary Biology & Ecology Students (GrEBES) and the Institute for Ecology and Evolution (IE²).