Tom Moran

Petersburg plans for landslides

By Tom Moran | April 16, 2026

Two men with backpacks look down the path of a landslide through a forest.

You can’t do much to stop a landslide. But in Petersburg, an Alaska Sea Grant-supported effort will help residents better understand which areas are most at risk. “We’ve seen a…

Fishing up marine debris with the Fosses

By Tom Moran | April 14, 2026

A man in a blue raincoat, orange gloves and black rubber suspenders - fishing gear - stands atop a fishing boat next to a giant plastic bag full of garbage. Another bag is below him.

In a typical summer, Sitka fisherman Jacquie Foss and her family travel hundreds of miles around Southeast Alaska, averaging only eight miles an hour. While their profession affords them countless…

Mariculture Conference draws a crowd

By Tom Moran | April 7, 2026

A fancy tray of oysters, with a hand in a blue glove holding an oyster shucker.

All photos by Jessica Whitney/Alaska Sea Grant Alaska’s enthusiasm for mariculture was evident at last month’s Mariculture Conference of Alaska. More than 300 people gathered in Anchorage for the three-day…

Testing the waters of mariculture

By Tom Moran | March 31, 2026

A women, wearing a blue top and yellow lab gloves, displays a small plate covered with small red round slimy creatures.

An Alaska Sea Grant partnership enabled a group of Alaska Natives to dip their proverbial toes into the mariculture industry. In February, Alaska Sea Grant collaborated with the Central Council…

Planning the future of Indigenous stewardship

By Tom Moran | March 23, 2026

A Native Alaskan woman in a red kuspuk speaks into a microphone. Behind her is a photo montage of village scenes.

One of the newest ideas in Alaska land management dates back millennia. At a recent gathering in Fairbanks, representatives of Indigenous organizations and communities in Alaska and Canada met to…

Sharing science across Alaska

By Tom Moran | March 18, 2026

A montage of posters advertising public lectures on science topics.

What do walrus monitoring, the Tracy Arm tsunami and salmon bycatch have in common? All of them are important topics for audiences in Alaska’s coastal communities. Which is why each…

Helping Halong recovery, one freezer at a time

By Tom Moran | February 24, 2026

A number of foods sit in a cardboard box in ziploc bags and shrink wrap, including salmon filets, salmon strips and other subsistence foods.

Ex-typhoon Halong couldn’t have come at a worse time for residents of the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta—or for their freezers. “It’s fall time when the storms usually hit,” explained Katie Basile, Alaska…

Getting the word out about clean harbors

By Tom Moran | February 23, 2026

Some things you just can’t accomplish over Zoom. Which is why Alaska Sea Grant State Fellow Pax Templeton is making sure to meet Alaska’s harbormasters and harbor staff in person.…

Next generation of Alaska fishermen gather for summit

By Tom Moran | February 20, 2026

A group of 25 mostly young men and women stand outside the ornate front of the Alaska State Capitol.

The first time Noah Swenson attended the Alaska Young Fishermen’s Summit (AYFS), he found a boat. The second time, he found his voice. In 2024, the then-27-year-old Homer fisherman spent…

Hooking Nome students on HAB research

By Tom Moran | February 9, 2026

A high school student in a brown parka and black pants holds a small fish in his hand and smiles broadly. He sits on the ice with his other hand holding a stick with a line running into the hole. Beside him are a clipboard and a bucket.

Ice fishing is not the most common method of data collection. But for students at Nome-Beltz High School, a couple of afternoons in December spent jigging for tomcod was a…