AK EPSCoR is offering a limited number of Travel Awards for students to present at either the Alaska Marine Science Symposium, the Alaska Forum, the Kachemak Bay Science Conference or the Mariculture Conference of Alaska. Info & link: www.alaska.edu/epscor/oppor...
Alaska NSF EPSCoR
@alaskaepscor.bsky.social
Alaska EPSCoR is dedicated to improving Alaska's research capacity. Our project, "Interface of Change," investigates Gulf of Alaska ecosystems, marine subsistence and mariculture species, and coastal communities. linktr.ee/alaskaepscor
Congrats to Gabriel Gray, recipient of the 2026 Impact Award from the UAF Office of Intellectual Property and Commercialization! His research shows that Alaskan kelp can essentially be an ingredient in polylactic acid bioplastics used for 3D printing and compostable packaging. #AlaskaMariculture
Fairbanks-based photographer Andy Padilla is one of our artists-in-residence. And with a background as a fisheries biologist, he's no stranger to field work. For #FieldworkFriday, he sent us these photos and a trip report from time with researchers in Homer and Sadie Cove. 📸 by Andy Padilla
#FieldworkFriday report from Co-PI Jordan Jenckes in Kachemak Bay: "We conducted a 24 hour geophysical survey at the Wosnesenski River Delta. This work is crucial to our understanding of submarine groundwater discharge in these incredibly dynamic environments." And, he said, they had great weather
Our bivalves team surveyed eelgrass sites and collected eDNA in Juneau last week! Researchers Julie Schram, Nicole Nakata and their interns were joined by one of our artists-in-residence, Ellie Schmidt, a visual artist, filmmaker and PhD candidate at the USC School of Cinematic Arts. 📸 Ellie Schmidt
When the Mendenhall Glacial Lake Outburst Flood is in town, water sample processing doesn't stop! Data from the stream path can help researchers understand how sediment loads change with the use of HESCO barriers and how sediment and carbon exports from the Mendenhall glacier impact area wetlands.
PI Brenda Konar has dissected many urchins in her career, but watching Artist-in-Residence Kim Schuster of Aqueous Designs take a different approach to urchin dissection helped her appreciate how beautiful the creatures are. More arist collabs with In a Time of Change to come! 📸 by Kim Schuster
We've got a new #VirtualReality game -- Kachemak Bay: Bay of Abundance! Spend a day in the flippers of our researchers, at a location based on an actual EPSCoR project site! Play on a computer solo or with a friend! Learn more and download the game here: alaskaepscor.itch.io/kachemak-bay...
🐾Come visit us at #UAF Day at the #TananaValleyStateFair in Fairbanks -- 8/3 from 12-7pm! Dive with our researchers via our 360° dome and collect stream data at our new VR field site. Plus, grab an activity book to go! Wear UAF gear or show your PolarExpress card for a discount at the gate!
This #FieldworkFriday, our #Mariculture biofouling research team is busy on the water! ⚓️ They're #ScientificDiving at a partner #Oyster farm to sample the benthic organisms in that zone 🦀. They're also measuring kelp samples and looking for patterns between kelp size and proximity to the farm.📍📐
🐾 Introducing PETSCoR! 🍣 Tuna belongs to Rachel Lekanoff, a PhD student in UAF's College of Fisheries and Ocean Sciences, and member of our bivalves team. Tuna enjoys scavenging for her favorite forbidden treats: bread, uncooked pasta, and other carbs. #PETSCoR #FurryFriends #PetOfTheDay #Pets
Have you heard the buzz about metabolomics?🐝 🔬#Metabolomics is an emerging field in systems biology, used to analyze an organism's #metabolites. Our #DataVisualization team made this animation to show how metabolites work in humans. Stay tuned to see how our researchers are using metabolomics.🪸
Alaska Science Olympiad 2026 kicked off this morning! We're so excited! 🚀 If you missed UAF Giving Day, but you still want to show us your love for #AlaskaScienceOlympiad, you can still give: bit.ly/ScienceOlymp... Thank you so much, and good luck today teams!!
Donate to Alaska Science Olympiad | EPSCoR
EPSCoR
bit.ly
UAF fisheries geneticist Jessica Glass, Alaska Sea Grant Associate Director for Research Molly Cain, and Alaska EPSCoR Director, marine biologist Brenda Konar mingling at the UA Museum of the North last night!
For the next #49HoursForAlaska, we're thinking about Alaska Science Olympiad. 🤓 Donate through UAF Giving Day between now and Thursday, March 26, at 1 p.m.! bit.ly/ScienceOlympiad-GivingDay26
We're gearing up for our fourth year hosting the annual statewide Alaska Science Olympiad Division B at the University of Alaska Fairbanks! Middle school teams compete and show off their skills in science, technology, engineering, and math Friday, March 27!
Middle schoolers to compete in Alaska Science Olympiad
The Alaska Science Olympiad Division B will convene March 27-28 at the University of Alaska Fairbanks Troth Yeddha’ Campus. The olympiad is part of a nationwide competition consisting of hands-on,…
uaf.edu
Applications are now open for Interface of Change seed awards to fund research and student research projects. 🌱 Apply by May 8. www.alaska.edu/epscor/oppor...
Urchin ranching, a method of seafood production that could help restore kelp forests? EPSCoR director, UAF marine biologist Brenda Konar studies green urchin ranching and believes that urchin ranching can be effective, but it’s a matter of scale. buff.ly/z0f2rOm
TriplePundit • Urchins Are Ravaging Pacific Kelp Forests. Will Seafood Ranches Stop Their Path of Destruction?
Urchins Are Ravaging Pacific Kelp Forests. Will Seafood Ranches Stop Their Path of Destruction?
triplepundit.com
We are hosting a professional development workshop on conducting respectful, cooperative research. 💞 Tues, Mar. 31 at UAF. Limited travel support available. Register now at: alaska.edu/epscor/news/events
The Interface of Change team had a great time convening in Fairbanks at the University of Alaska Fairbanks for our All Hands Meeting. On the first day of the meeting, we bundled up for temperatures of -30 F. On the second day of the meeting, it snowed several inches!
“Each community is unique.” Josie Sam, professor and co-chair of the UAF Dept of Alaska Native Studies and Rural Development and co-founder of nonprofit the Nyarkoa Foundation, joins the Interface of Change project leadership team. www.alaska.edu/epscor/news/...
Happy Halloween! We made some clam-o-lanterns...! 🎃 Curious about Interface of Change research on clams in Kachemak Bay? Learn more...! Visit: www.alaska.edu/.../interfac...
📨 Catch up on Alaska EPSCoR news in our October newsletter! tr.ee/7tbjBn 📸 L to R: Erica Ebert, Tara Borland, Brenda Konar, Davin Holen, and Courtney Breest traveled to Hydaburg to organize a Mini Alaska Science Olympiad event for Hydaburg School.
Registration is now open for IGNITE 2026! 🔥 IGNITE: Individual Growth & New Ideas Through EPSCoR/INBRE will take place Jan. 7, 2026 at the BP Energy Center in ANC. ✈️📅 Register by Nov. 19 to be considered for travel funding to attend. alaska.edu/ignite
✈️ Alaska EPSCoR’s Interface of Change project is offering up to $1,500 for spring travel to present at a conference or attend a training. Open to students, staff & faculty from any Alaska higher ed institution. Apply by 5 PM AKDT, October 24! Info: alaska.edu/epscor/opportunities/travel-funding/
3-year PhD student fellowships are available through UAF College of Fisheries & Ocean Sciences for prospective students have received the distinction of NSF EGRFP Honorable Mention. Fellowships begin in May or Aug. 2026, and the application window is open now through Jan. 15, 2026.
Now that the red seaweeds team completed their first year of field sampling, grad student Lindsay Meyer is visiting UAA to work with postdoc Monica Brandhuber on assessing the metabolomics of red seaweeds that were grown in different environmental settings! 🌿🔬
Alaska EPSCoR Interface of Change researchers are studying clam ecology and population dynamics in Kachemak Bay in partnership with the Seldovia Village Tribe. This week, SVT environmental scientists Katrina Hecks and Stephen Payton are sampling clams at a beach near Seldovia. #FieldworkFriday
📢 Call for Artists: Coastal Transitions 🌊 Alaska EPSCoR + In a Time of Change invite artists to apply for a new 2-year art-science collaboration. Selected artists work with scientists & communities to investigate coastal social-ecological themes in the Gulf of Alaska. Apply by 8/29 itoc.alaska.edu