Junior SeaKeepers Webinar 6: Will Greene - Unique Research Techniques

Overview

On Wednesday, February 7th, 2024, The International SeaKeepers Society hosted the sixth Junior SeaKeepers Program webinar for 2023-24 cohort students. For this virtual talk, we were thrilled to have Will Greene, Research Associate for the Perry Institute for Marine Science (PIMS) and PhD student at Arizona State University.

Will Greene is a scientist at the Perry Institute for Marine Science (PIMS), a research and conservation non-profit working primarily in The Bahamas, aimed at understanding and restoring the health of coastal and marine ecosystems. Will grew up on the coast of Maine and studied conservation biology at Middlebury College in Vermont. He started SCUBA diving at age 10 and quickly fell in love with the ocean and coral reef conservation. His work at PIMS is focussed on developing and using imaging tools like specialized drones and underwater cameras to map and monitor the health of coral reefs and mangroves as they change in response to diseases, hurricanes, climate change, and restoration efforts. Much of the Perry Institute’s work in The Bahamas requires accessing remote reefs by boat, and they have partnered with Seakeepers to help make their research in far-flung locations possible. Through his imagery and maps, Will helps PIMS to see exactly how reefs are changing on the millimeter scale, helping to direct efforts to conserve these vital ecosystems. In addition to his work at PIMS, Will is currently a PhD student at Arizona State University, studying coral ecology and remote sensing.

Outing Goal

By attending webinars led by research scientists, our Junior SeaKeepers have the opportunity to learn first-hand about the diversity of work that exists in the marine conservation realm. Additionally, students get direct access to accomplished professionals and are able to see the advancements in the field that are the result of research happening every day all over the world. Will’s research was a great addition to our webinar series, as it highlighted the unique research techniques that can be utilized to further marine conservation research like machine learning and the aerial drones. Through speaking with Will about his research and personal history, we hope that our JSKs were able to collect some inspiration for both their research projects and their professional futures moving forward.