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Brady Olson, a scientist at Western’s Shannon Point Marine Center, holds a flask of seawater and stares intently at the tiny creatures called copepods swimming inside it. They dart about like frenzied boatmen, through water altered to reflect what climate scientists call “the worst case scenario:” that in 100 years, the ocean could become so acidic that seawater literally scours the calcium skins from some of the tiny creatures at the foundation of the oceanic food web.

This scenario – projected as the coming reality by the more than 2,000 scientists worldwide serving on the United Nations’ Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change – drives researchers like Olson and his peer at Shannon Point, Brooke Love. It’s why they spend so many hours on the water collecting specimens and analyzing data from their experiments in the lab. At the heart of their passion lies the central question: What does this mean for our planet?

Brady Olson has so many questions, but every answer he gets from his research into ocean acidification seems to spawn five new lines of inquiry.

“The scope of what we’re researching – the implications of what this could mean for the planet – can feel pretty daunting, pretty important,” said Olson, a marine scientist at Western’s Shannon Point Marine Center in Anacortes, where many scientists and students collaborate on ocean research. “We understand what is at stake.”

Read the rest of this story -- and watch the video -- on the website for Window magazine.

Twenty-nine-year-old Adam Roberts can't imagine spending hours in stop-and-go traffic. It would kill him to sit behind a desk from nine to five. Roberts has carved out a space for himself beyond the humdrum world of making money and paying rent. He has built a custom home on the truck bed of his Toyota Tacoma so he can live where he truly feels alive - on the mountain. Roberts lives out of his truck, which you can often find on in the parking lot of the Mount Baker Ski Area 50 miles east of Bellingham, Wash. He hikes up the mountain on skins and skis down through massive powder. He cooks and sleeps in his self-made gypsy wagon. Living off the grid has its challenges, but Roberts willingly sacrifices convenience to be amongst the trees, deep in the snow.

This video profile was shot, edited and produced by Western Washington University students Jasper Gibson, Hannah Leone, Elliot Reid and Annika Wolters for a Digital Media in Journalism class taught by Stephen Howie. They shot video of Roberts performing day-to-day activities and skiing on Mount Baker, and they interviewed him in his natural environment.

Former Washington Gov. Gary Locke, the speaker at the 9 a.m. ceremony, recently completed two years as the U.S. ambassador to China. He also served in President Obama’s Cabinet as the secretary of commerce.

Born and raised in Seattle, Locke is a two-term governor of the state of Washington and a former member of the Washington House of Representatives.

At commencement, Locke received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Western for his distinguished career of public service at the state, national and international levels.

Jerry Thon, the speaker at the 12:30 p.m. spring commencement ceremony June 14, is the vice president of Astoria Holdings, a fish processing plant in Astoria, Oregon. He’s also the former owner of New West Fisheries in Bellingham and the immediate past president of the Western Foundation.

A longtime supporter of Western, Thon is chairman of the Western at Home committee, which works to help Bellingham community leaders get more acquainted with the university.

Douglas Massey, the speaker at the 4 p.m. commencement ceremony June 14, is a sociologist specializing in international migration and socioeconomic stratification.

At Princeton University, Massey directs the Office of Population Research and oversees the Mexican Migration Project and the Latin American Migration Project, two long-term studies exploring the complex causes and consequences of migration. Massey also received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1990 to write "American Apartheid: Segregation and the Making of the Underclass," one of his many comprehensive studies of how inequality is produced in the United States.

Brian O'Sullivan spoke at the 9 a.m. ceremony during spring commencement June 14, 2014.

O'Sullivan graduated with a self-designed concentration from Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies that incorporates his interests in art and psychology. He hopes to study art therapy in graduate school. O'Sullivan is a graduate of Juneau Douglas High School in Juneau, Alaska.

Christina Van Wingerden, who graduated with a Master of Education in Continuing and College Education, spoke at the 12:30 commencement ceremony June 14, 2014.

Van Wingerden is administrator to the dean of students at Western and earned her bachelor’s degree from Western in 2011.

Twins Anne and Andrea d’Aquino speak at the 4 p.m. commencement ceremony June 14.

Anne is receiving a Bachelor of Science in biochemistry while Andrea is receiving a Bachelor of Science degree in chemistry.

They have excelled at research, scholarship and community service and are both recipients of a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. They are Bellingham residents and graduates of Squalicum High School.

Western Washington University President Bruce Shepard honored six graduates as Presidential Scholars during Commencement on Saturday, June 14.

Presidential Scholar awards honor top students in six colleges for their exceptional scholarship and service to the university and community.

Shepard presented each of the following Presidential Scholars with a medallion:

Bodie Happy Cabiyo - Huxley College of the Environment

Bodie Cabiyo graduated Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree in Environmental Science. An accomplished scholar with an intense love of learning, Cabiyo spent a considerable amount of time as a leader and innovator for cleaning the Earth. He has been studying technology for cleaning up contaminated sediments and spent two summers in India helping and learning about cleanup efforts there. Cabiyo immerses himself in different cultures and brings that knowledge back to other parts of his life. He is committed to service and has organized many events such as a festival to raise funds for victims of the Japan tsunami and served as president of Western’s Meditation Club. He is also a recipient of the Achiever’s Scholarship from the College Success Foundation. After graduation, Cabiyo plans to go back to India for a year to work on a waste management project using a technique called biochar, then return to the U.S. to attend graduate school. He is from Chesaw in Okanogan County, a graduate of Tonasket High School and the son of Kay McDonald and Michael Vilardi.

Andrea Ivana d’Aquino - College of Sciences and Technology

Andrea d’Aquino graduated as the Outstanding Student in Chemistry. Known for her creativity, drive and tenacity for research, d’Aquino has won numerous scholarships, awards and honors, including the Kaiser-Borsari Scholarship for Women in Materials Science, the Gates Millennium Scholarship and the WWU Presidential Scholarship. She served as Western’s chapter president of the Society for the Advancement of Hispanics/Chicanos and Native Americans in Science and coordinated several events to encourage underrepresented groups to consider STEM fields. Her research at Western consisted of investigating a new method to remove sulfur and nitrogen from crude oil. She has helped develop a method that was thought to be a long-shot, but it’s yielding good results so far and is now being investigated by Shell Oil Co. D’Aquino is headed to graduate school in the fall at Northwestern University with the help of the prestigious National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. A graduate of Squalicum High School, she is from Bellingham and is the daughter of Katherine and Joao d’Aquino and the youngest of five siblings: Aurea, Valentina, Anthony and Anne. Anne, who graduated in June with a degree in biochemistry, will join her at Northwestern and is also a recipient of the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship. Andrea and Anne d’Aquino together were student speakers at their Commencement ceremony.

Rivka Leah Horowitz - Woodring College of Education

Rivka Horowitz, who graduated in December with a bachelor’s degree in Special Education, is an exceptional scholar deeply committed to serving children from low socio-economic backgrounds, those with behavioral or learning disabilities, and children who are learning English. Her publication on improving motivation in students with learning disabilities was accepted by the Council for Exceptional Children for its international convention in 2014, a rare feat for an undergraduate student. For her practicum placements, she sought out schools and classrooms with students with significant behavioral and learning challenges. She completed part of her student teaching requirements at an orphanage school in Ghana, where she found many students needed special education services, but none were available. So Horowitz worked with Special Education faculty at Woodring to learn how to train other teachers at the orphanage about differentiation of instruction. Beginning this fall, Horowitz plans to earn her master’s degree in Reading Education at Boston University, exploring neuroscience and learning disabilities. A graduate of Riverdale High School in Portland, Oregon, she is the daughter of Lewis and Lisa Horowitz.

Margaret Elizabeth McGuigan - College of Fine and Performing Arts

Meg McGuigan, who graduated Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree in Theatre and a minor in Art History, is known to her professors as a meticulous, high-achieving scholar who engages classmates in thoughtful dialogue. But she might be best known for theatre design work, particularly the 13 horse heads she created for Western’s production of “Equus.” Working with the costume shop supervisor, McGuigan designed a cost-effective head piece that was easy to wear and stunning to the eye. She presented the designs at the U.S. Institute for Theatre Technology’s Student Initiative Committee. McGuigan also spent time as an exchange student at Queen Mary University of London and completed an internship at the Taproot Theatre Co. in Seattle. McGuigan is the daughter of Tom and Jan McGuigan and a graduate of Bishop Blanchet High School in Seattle. After graduation, she plans to complete an internship in scenic design at B Street Theatre in Sacramento, California.

Jordan Olivia Richardson - College of Humanities & Social Sciences

Jordan Richardson graduated Cum Laude with a bachelor’s degree in Communication. A highly intelligent, driven student, Richardson focused her research on a specific topic: sizeism in mass media culture, or discrimination based on size. Richardson explored how sizeism is prevalent in society, but unlike other types of discrimination, is rarely spoken of or studied in academic research. She is working to bring these issues to light in hopes that people will not be treated differently based on their size. Richardson draws on her scholarly insights as an image consultant for Middle Women, a social justice organization that focuses on positive body images for women of all sizes. After graduation, Richardson says she would like to take a little time off from academics, but is looking for a job to stay in the Pacific Northwest. She is a graduate of Mariner High School in Everett and is the daughter of Jocelyn Rehbock of Everett and Callas Richardson of Davis, California.

Paul Gregory Wright - College of Business and Economics

Paul Wright graduated in December 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in Accounting. He now works as an auditor at Moss Adams LLP and volunteers for Children’s Hospital in Seattle as an event speaker. Earning a college degree, giving back to the community and living independently are goals Wright and his family have worked toward since the day he was born. Wright has arthrogryposis, a disability that left him with stiff joints and missing muscles, and doctors told his parents he might never walk. But Wright has always been set on surpassing the expectations of others. Wright credits his family, particularly his mother Susan, with making sure he was independent enough for college. He received academic honors at South Puget Sound Community College, completed an internship at Moss Adams and earned a place in the Beta Alpha Psi honorary society at Western. He also worked hard at Western to reach out to other students with disabilities and advocated for equal rights and access. In 2012, Wright received the Medal of Inspiration Award from the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. Paul Wright is the son of Greg and Susan Wright and a graduate of Olympia High School. He’s also the brother of Sarah Wright, who taught her little brother to walk when he was 3. 

Former Gov. Gary Locke received an honorary doctorate and addressed Western Washington University graduates and their families at one of three spring commencement ceremonies in Carver Gymnasium on June 14.

The other main speakers were scholar Douglas Massey (’74), the Henry G. Bryant Professor of Sociology at Princeton University, and Jerry Thon (’75), vice president of Astoria Holdings.

About 1,935 students were expected to graduate from Western, including 1,775 undergraduate and 160 master’s students.

Locke, the speaker at the 9 a.m. ceremony, recently completed two years as the U.S. ambassador to China. He also served in President Obama’s Cabinet as the secretary of commerce. Born and raised in Seattle, Locke is a two-term governor of the state of Washington and a former member of the Washington House of Representatives. Locke received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from Western for his distinguished career of public service at the state, national and international levels.

Thon, the speaker at the 12:30 p.m. ceremony, is the vice president of Astoria Holdings, a fish processing plant in Astoria, Ore. He’s also the former owner of New West Fisheries in Bellingham and the immediate past president of the Western Foundation. A longtime supporter of Western, Thon is chairman of the Western at Home committee, which works to help Bellingham community leaders get more acquainted with the university.

Massey, the speaker at the 4 p.m. ceremony, is a sociologist specializing in international migration and socioeconomic stratification. At Princeton University, Massey directs the Office of Population Research and oversees the Mexican Migration Project and the Latin American Migration Project, two long-term studies exploring the complex causes and consequences of migration. Massey also received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1990 to write “American Apartheid: Segregation and the Making of the Underclass,” one of his many comprehensive studies of how inequality is produced in the U.S. 

In addition to the keynote speaker, a WWU student spoke at each commencement ceremony.

Brian O’Sullivan spoke at the 9 a.m. ceremony. O’Sullivan will graduate with a self-designed concentration from Fairhaven College of Interdisciplinary Studies that incorporates his interests in art and psychology. He hopes to study art therapy in graduate school. O’Sullivan is a graduate of Juneau Douglas High School in Juneau, Alaska.

The 12:30 p.m. speaker was Christina Van Wingerden, who graduated with a Master of Education in Continuing and College Education. Van Wingerden is administrator to the dean of students at Western and earned her bachelor’s degree from Western in 2011.

Twins Anne and Andrea d’Aquino spoke at the 4 p.m. ceremony. Anne received a bachelor's degree in biochemistry, while Andrea received a bachelor's degree in chemistry. They have excelled at research, scholarship and community service and are both recipients of a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. They are Bellingham residents and graduates of Squalicum High School.

There were additional commencement-related ceremonies and gatherings during the afternoon. Fairhaven College held an additional graduation celebration at 1 p.m. in the Performing Arts Center Concert Hall. There also was a celebration for Huxley graduates at 2 p.m. in the PAC Mainstage Theatre.