coastal-science-and-policy
A joint UC Santa Cruz and U.S. Geological Survey project tracks sea otters off the California Central Coast using a radio receiver and a telescope.eft: A joint UC Santa Cruz and U.S. Geological Survey project tracks sea otters off the California Central Coast using a radio receiver and a telescope. (Photo by Sean Bogle)

UC Santa Cruz is extending its environmental leadership in coastal science with a robust new program that will welcome its first cohort of students in fall 2018. The Graduate Program in Coastal Science and Policy will train advocates and develop government and community responses to pressing sustainability issues. The program is one-of-a- kind in its goals and resources: significant private support is making possible full-ride fellowships for the inaugural class. The Ed Ricketts Fund, named for the marine biologist and muse of John Steinbeck, will support an internship program. The new graduate program will be based on the Coastal Science Campus, where private support is leveraging state investment in a new Coastal Biology Building and the marine mammal pools. At the Center for Ocean Health, the Holo Family Classroom honors the family’s investment in the coastal campus. Keeley Coastal Scholarships are giving UC Santa Cruz students the opportunity for hands-on summer research in coastal sustainability. A few miles down the coast, in the Pajaro Valley, UC Santa Cruz research supported by the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation and others is advancing technology for farmers that addresses groundwater conservation and quality. It’s part of the Recharge Initiative, a collaboration addressing this critical coastal science and policy issue.

Key support provide by the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, Julie Packard (Crown ’74,  biology; M.A. ’78), the Helen and Will Webster Foundation, Wells Fargo Foundation, Hope Hardison, Christine Holo (Oakes ’90, biology), Rob Holo (Croiwn ’87, history, East Asian studies), Joseph and Vera Long Foundation, Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, Fred Keeley, Marisla Foundation.