Blue Pioneers Program

Director and Core Faculty
Coastal Science and Policy Program
University of California Santa Cruz

Anne Kapuscinski serves as director and core faculty in the Coastal Science and Policy Program at the University of California Santa Cruz. She is a professor of Environmental Studies and an interdisciplinary scholar committed to finding scientifically and socially robust solutions to a major challenge: how to perpetuate healthy aquatic ecosystems while sustaining resource uses that support human wellbeing. Her past research examined impacts of dams, fish hatcheries, aquaculture and genetic engineering on fish conservation. Her current research aims to shift aquaculture, the world’s fastest growing food sector, towards sustainability. She also pursues ecological aquaculture strategies to close water and nutrient loops and conserve biodiversity. Her awards include Pew Fellow in Marine Conservation, Distinguished Service Award from the Society for Conservation Biology, and most recently a 2019 Ocean Award in the Innovation Category.