Who is on the Council, and what seats do they fill?

The OAH Council is made up of members from multiple agencies and organizations.  These members represent a variety of interests.

DR. LAUREN (LAURIE) JURANEK

COUNCIL CO-CHAIR

Laurie Juranek is an Associate Professor at Oregon State University in the College of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences (CEOAS). She received a Ph.D. in Chemical Oceanography in 2007 from the University of Washington, followed by a National Research Council postdoctoral fellowship with NOAA’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory pertaining to carbon cycling and ocean acidification. Her expertise is the use of dissolved gases, nutrients, inorganic carbon, and associated isotope tracers to understand biogeochemical processes in the ocean. She enjoys working on complex oceanographic data sets and collaborating across disciplines with physical oceanographers and marine microbial ecologists.

 DR. LEIF RASMUSON

COUNCIL CO-CHAIR, Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife

Leif Rasmuson runs the Marine Fisheries Research Project in the Marine Resources Program at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Leif received his Ph.D. in Marine Biology in 2015 from the University of Oregon, followed by a postdoctoral position at the National Marine Fisheries Service's Southeast Fisheries Science Center. Leif has wide ranging experience from being a treaty shellfish biologist to developing physical oceanographic circulation models. He uses these experiences to help guide an extremely talented team of scientists at ODFW in conducting research to support sustainable fisheries management at the Pacific Fisheries Management Council.

 ALEX MANDERSON

Oregon Department of Agriculture

Alex Manderson is the Shellfish Specialist for the Oregon Department of Agriculture. He is responsible for implementing the internationally recognized National Shellfish Sanitation Program (NSSP) within Oregon. This program ensures that molluscan shellfish going into commerce are safe and wholesome. Alex also oversees Oregon's marine biotoxin monitoring program for both molluscan shellfish and Dungeness crab, shellfish and food processor licensing and inspection, and handling mariculture leasing applications on State owned tidelands within Oregon. Alex graduated from Massey University in New Zealand and has worked for ODA for the past 15 years. His interests in ocean acidification and hypoxia are from the perspective of the commercial shellfish and crab industry and their long-term resilience. 

RIAN vanden HOOFF

Oregon Department of Environmental Quality 

Rian is a Senior Policy Analyst for the Oregon DEQ, where he provides legislative policy, budget development, and strategic guidance for DEQ’s Water Quality Programs while working closely with stakeholders, elected officials, tribal governments, and other agencies. Prior to starting his current role in 2019, Rian’s career background includes serving as DEQ’s first Ballast Water Program and Invasive Species Management Coordinator, and working as a marine and estuarine research faculty member at multiple west coast universities – including the Oregon Institute of Marine Biology (UO) and the Hatfield Marine Science Center (OSU) – where he focused on zooplankton community response to changing environmental conditions. He has received degrees in Environmental Science (B.Sc., University of Oregon) and Marine Ecology (M.Sc., San Francisco State University).

 

 

 ANDY LANIER

 Department of Land Conservation and Development

Andy Lanier is the Marine Affairs Coordinator with Oregon’s federally approved Coastal Management Program. He holds a M.S. degree in Marine Resource Management from Oregon State University. Andy is the Co-Chair of the West Coast Ocean Data Portal and is a staffer to the Ocean Policy Advisory Council. Throughout his career he has been dedicated to promoting the inclusion of science based considerations regarding ocean acidification and hypoxia into state management and policy.

DR. KEITH WOLF

Oregon Ocean Science Trust

Dr. Keith Wolf is an appointed board member of the Oregon Ocean Science Trust through 2026. He has managed diverse environmental programs and divisions for over thirty years. He has developed and led multiple government, academic and private industry research and monitoring programs in the US and Canada. Recently, he co-led a global Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG), Climate, and Sustainability Task Force across the Asia Pacific and Americas. At present, he holds a specialized Endangered Species Act contract position with the US Department of Commerce/NOAA Fisheries, where he is a member of the West Coast Climate Team and NOAA's Marine Carbon Dioxide Reduction working group. He is also supporting NOAA Sea Grant and the Administration’s Climate-Ready-Workforce program funded by the landmark Inflation Reduction Act legislation. He holds a bachelor's of science degree in Natural Resources Management, with certificates in Geographical Information Systems, Climate Scenario Planning, and Project Management from Sheppard University, Bellevue College, Pacific Lutheran University and Western Washington University. Later, he received a Ph.D. in Environmental Engineering with distinction where he innovated new technology and decision-support systems for environmental remote sensing systems. 

DR. KARINA NIESLEN

 Oregon Sea Grant

Karina Nielsen is the director of the Oregon Sea Grant (OSG) program based at Oregon State University. OSG's mission is to promote discovery, understanding, and resilience for the coastal communities and ecosystems in Oregon. Karina also serves as an ex-officio council member of Oregon’s Ocean Policy Advisory Council (OPAC), chair of the OPAC Science & Technical Advisory Committee, and board member of the California Ocean Science Trust. Previously she was the executive director of the Estuary & Ocean Science Center and a professor of biology at San Francisco State University and Sonoma State University. She earned her Ph.D. in Zoology from Oregon State University in 1998 and a B.S. in Biology from Brooklyn College, City University of New York in 1992.

FRAN RECHT

 Conservation Organization Representative

Fran Recht is the Habitat Program Manager for the Pacific States Marine Fisheries Commission. In her position, she acts to conserve and restore freshwater, estuarine and ocean habitats. She works by advancing policies and actions through work with collaborative, multiparty groups such as the Pacific Fishery Management Council, the Pacific Marine and Estuarine Fish Habitat Partnership, forest service stewardship groups, and local watershed councils. She also brings her academic background in biochemistry and marine resource management to this issue.

BOB KEMP

Fishing Representative

Bob Kemp has been fishing crab, salmon, and tuna for 35 years. Although he has had several careers throughout his life, fishing came easily thanks to his comfort around the ocean from an early age. Now, he owns his own operation and represents the fishing industry as the Newport Sea Grant Fisherman Representative, a Fisherman Representative at Science and Fisherman Exchange Meetings, and the secretary of the Newport Fisherman’s Crab Association. Previously, he served as the Fishing Representative to the Mid-Coast Watershed Council from 2000 to 2012. Throughout his career, he has been dedicated to providing his perspective and ocean observations to the scientific community.

KRISTEN PENNER

Shellfish Industry Representative

Kristen is a commercial fisherman participating in several of Oregon’s fisheries, including shellfish. She is also a Food Systems Consultant at Columbia Pacific Economic Development District of Oregon. Kristen is certified in Community Food Resource and Hub Management and Sustainable Food Enterprise Financial Planning and Management from the University of Vermont Continuing and Distance Education.

DR. JESSICA MILLER
Academic Representative

Jessica Miller is a Professor in Fisheries and Wildlife at Oregon State University (OSU), a member of the Coastal Oregon Marine Experiment Station (COMES), and stationed at the Hatfield Marine Science Center in Newport, Oregon. She leads the Marine & Anadromous Fisheries Ecology Program within COMES and also teaches an undergraduate and graduate course focused on the early life history of fishes. Since 2012, she has been OSU’s Project Director for the Living Marine Resources Cooperative Science Center, a NOAA-funded effort to promote underrepresented communities in marine science. Her research interests include the evolution of life history diversity and dispersal, mixing, and migration in marine and anadromous populations. Through collaborations, she combines field and lab studies with biogeochemistry to address basic questions in marine and fisheries ecology as well as contribute to management and conservation efforts. She received a B.A. in Zoology from the University of Montana, a M.S. in Fisheries from University of Washington, and a Ph.D. in Biology from the University of Oregon. 

 JOHN SCHAEFER
Tribal Government Representative

John Schaefer earned his B.S. degree from Oregon State University in biology, and has acted as the water protection specialist and biologist for the Confederated Tribes of the Coos, Lower Umpqua & Siuslaw Indians since 2015. As part of the Department of Natural Resources & Culture team, John represents the CTCLUSI natural resource interests at local stakeholder meetings and watershed councils. Prior, to working for the tribes, John was a shellfish biologist for ODFW for over ten years. He is a Coos Tribal member with interests in first foods and other cultural resources, and he is dedicated to preserving natural resources and creating local adaptation actions, in light of changing ocean conditions from OAH.

KARIN POWER

Governor’s Office Representative

Karin Power is the Governor’s Natural Resources and Climate Advisor, providing assistance on broader natural resource issues and focused efforts on climate and energy. Karin holds a J.D. from Lewis & Clark Law School with a Certificate in Environmental and Natural Resources Law, and she has worked for over ten years in water quality and quantity, habitat restoration, climate change policy, and sustainable business initiatives.

OAH Council Staff

KATLYN LOCKHART

Ocean Acidification Policy Assistant Project Leader

Katlyn Lockhart works at the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife (ODFW) where she helps manage the Oregon Coordinating Council on Ocean Acidification and Hypoxia. Prior to taking on this role, she was a Port Biologist for ODFW collecting and maintaining data from commercial groundfish landings in Winchester Bay, Coos Bay, and Bandon. These data are used in stock assessment models, which help inform fisheries management and policy decisions at the Pacific Fishery Management Council. She also worked for the National Park Service’s (NPS) Ocean and Coastal Resources Program as an Alaska Sea Grant State Fellow in the Alaska Regional Office. While with the NPS she studied zooplankton and phytoplankton in arctic lagoons, categorized habitat types along Alaska’s shoreline, and assisted with a study assessing the nearshore habitat and biological communities in Cook Inlet. Katlyn received her B.S. in Zoology and M.S. in Marine Resource Management from Oregon State University. Her master’s thesis focused on the abundance and distribution of juvenile groundfish along the central Oregon coast and how increased nearshore sampling could better inform stock assessment models. Aside from her work in marine biology and ocean change, Katlyn loves to go hiking and ballroom dancing. 

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