Huxley Speaker Series to present overview of research and education opportunities at WWU's Shannon Point Marine Center Sept. 27

Kathy Van Alstyne will present "Marine Science Research and Education at WWU’s Shannon Point Marine Center" at 4:45 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 27 in Academic West 204 as part of the Huxley Speaker Series.

The Shannon Point Marine Center (SPMC) is Western Washington University’s marine laboratory in Anacortes, Washington.  It is the home base for five WWU faculty members and marine scientists who integrate their research in organismal biology and ecology, community and ecosystem ecology, and ocean and organismal chemistry with undergraduate and graduate level training.  Over a dozen other faculty from a variety of departments at WWU and their students also conduct research at the facility. In addition to working on research projects at SPMC, undergraduates and graduate students can take Biology and Environmental Science courses and participate in community outreach activities at SPMC.

This talk will describe some of the activities that take place at SPMC; opportunities for students to take courses, become involved in research projects, and participate in outreach activities; and a description of Kathy Van Alstyne’s research on the chemical ecology of marine seaweeds and seagrasses. 

Van Alstyne is a marine scientist at Shannon Point, where she manages SPMC’s Marine Chemistry Facilities and conducts research on the chemical ecology and physiology of marine seaweeds, seagrasses, and invertebrates.  She is particularly interested in the role of that natural products play in mediating interactions among organisms, and the costs, benefits, and the ecological and environmental impacts of producing these metabolites.  Her research has included studies in the Pacific Northwest, Australia, New Zealand, Micronesia, and the Caribbean.

Complimentary parking for the Huxley Speaker Series is available in Parking Lot 12A after 4 p.m. on Thursdays during Fall quarter.

The Huxley Speaker Series is hosted by Huxley College of the Environment, at Western Washington University.

The Series is free and open to the public. Presentations are held each Thursday in the Academic Center West (AW-204) on the WWU campus in Bellingham.