Policy, diplomacy, and conservation biology: multidisciplinary approaches to international fisheries
Hello, and thanks for visiting! My name is Brianna, and I am a PhD candidate in Marine Science and Conservation at Duke University. I have interdisciplinary interests in international fisheries, particularly explored through the fields of ocean policy, diplomacy, and conservation biology. My dissertation research addresses bycatch in tuna drift gillnet fisheries in the Indian Ocean under the supervision of Dr. Andy Read — please click here for a snapshot at some of the policy applications of my research. Other highlights of my PhD experience include becoming a National Geographic Explorer (2022), spending 9 months conducting research in La Réunion in the Indian Ocean, founding an Ocean Diplomacy Working Group at Duke University, and being awarded the Presidential Management Fellowship in 2024, amongst others.
I developed these interests in fisheries law, science, and policy through a range of academic and professional experiences, including as a Foreign Affairs Specialist at the National Marine Fisheries Service Office of International Affairs and Seafood Inspection, a NOAA John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow at the U.S. Department of State, and a consultant in the Duke Environmental Law and Policy Clinic. Prior to these positions, I received a Master of Environmental Management from Duke University. I also have a Bachelor of Science from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, where I studied sea turtle biology and conservation in Dr. Amanda Southwood Williard's lab (and journalism).
In my former life before pursuing graduate school, I held several field positions and then worked in science communication as an editor for Oceana, National Audubon, and other groups. Though hard to choose, my favorite field experience has been assisting with tagging Hawaiian monk seals on Kauai in the summer of 2016. While ocean policy has emerged as my prime interest, I still enjoy any time in the field or writing about the ocean.
Hello, and thanks for visiting! My name is Brianna, and I am a PhD candidate in Marine Science and Conservation at Duke University. I have interdisciplinary interests in international fisheries, particularly explored through the fields of ocean policy, diplomacy, and conservation biology. My dissertation research addresses bycatch in tuna drift gillnet fisheries in the Indian Ocean under the supervision of Dr. Andy Read — please click here for a snapshot at some of the policy applications of my research. Other highlights of my PhD experience include becoming a National Geographic Explorer (2022), spending 9 months conducting research in La Réunion in the Indian Ocean, founding an Ocean Diplomacy Working Group at Duke University, and being awarded the Presidential Management Fellowship in 2024, amongst others.
I developed these interests in fisheries law, science, and policy through a range of academic and professional experiences, including as a Foreign Affairs Specialist at the National Marine Fisheries Service Office of International Affairs and Seafood Inspection, a NOAA John A. Knauss Marine Policy Fellow at the U.S. Department of State, and a consultant in the Duke Environmental Law and Policy Clinic. Prior to these positions, I received a Master of Environmental Management from Duke University. I also have a Bachelor of Science from the University of North Carolina Wilmington, where I studied sea turtle biology and conservation in Dr. Amanda Southwood Williard's lab (and journalism).
In my former life before pursuing graduate school, I held several field positions and then worked in science communication as an editor for Oceana, National Audubon, and other groups. Though hard to choose, my favorite field experience has been assisting with tagging Hawaiian monk seals on Kauai in the summer of 2016. While ocean policy has emerged as my prime interest, I still enjoy any time in the field or writing about the ocean.