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Meet Our Experts
Oceans and Coasts
Michael W. Beck
Mike Beck is lead scientist for The Nature Conservancy's Global Marine Team and an adjunct faculty member in Ocean Sciences in the Center for Ocean Health at the University of California Santa Cruz. He works in the interface between marine science and policy. He has been a Fulbright Fellow and presently serves on Advisory Committees for the National Academy of Science (Marine Hydrokinetic Energy) and NOAA's Science Advisory Board (Ecosystem Science and Management). He was awarded a 2012 Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation to promote green infrastructure as a strategy for adapting to climate change and to support ecosystem recovery to help make communities less vulnerable to current coastal hazards.
Read Michael W. Beck's Full Biography
Mike in the Media
Nature’s Most Overlooked Benefit: Reefs Breaking Waves
Reefs break waves that would otherwise crash into & erode coasts on which millions of people & trillions of dollars in development sit, Mike explains on Care2.com.
Debris from Japanese Tsunami Could Hit U.S.
On NBC Nightly News, Mike discusses the size and potential impact of the debris from the Japanese tsunami.
Oyster Reefs are Vanishing from Overharvesting
Roughly 85 percent of the world’s oyster reefs have disappeared since the late 19th century, Mike tells the New York Times.
How to Save the World's Oysters -- and Eat Them Too
Saving oysters doesn't mean we can't enjoy them, too, Mike says on Grist.org.
Consequences of Oil Spills Can Last for Decades
Mike discusses the lasting environmental impacts of oil spills with CNN.com.
Aquaculture's Rise Brings Optimism, Concern
Mike offers his perspectives on aquaculture to the Washington Post.
Publications
Informing Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning
Guerry, A. M. + 28 others including M. W. Beck. 2012. Modelling benefits from nature: using ecosystem services to inform coastal and marine spatial planning. International Journal of Biodiversity Science, Ecosystem Services & Management.
Sea Level Rise and Storm Surge
Shepard, C., V. N. Agostini, B. Gilmer, T. Allen, J. Stone, W. Brooks, M. W. Beck. 2011. Assessing future risk: quantifying the effects of sea level rise on storm surge risk for the southern shores of Long Island, New York. Natural Hazards. DOI: 10.1007/s11069-011-0046-8.
The Protective Role of Coastal Marshes
Shepard, C., Crain, C., Beck, M.W. 2011. The protective role of coastal marshes: a systematic review and meta-analysis. PLoS ONE 6(11): e27374.
Coastal Hazard Mitigation and Ecosystem Services
M. W. Beck, B. Gilmer, A. W. Whelchel, Z. Ferdaña, J. Stone, G. Raber, C. Shepard and I. Meliane. In press 2012. Using interactive decision support to integrate coastal hazard mitigation and ecosystem services in Long Island Sound, New York and Connecticut USA. In Renaud, F. (Ed). Linkages between Ecosystems, Livelihoods and Disaster Risk Reduction, UNU Press, Bonn.
The Role of Ecosystems in Coastal Protection
Spalding, M. D., S. Ruffo, C. Lacambra, I. Meliane, L. Z. Hale, C. C. Shepard, M. W. Beck. In press. The role of ecosystems in coastal protection: adapting to climate change and coastal hazards. Ocean & Coastal Management.
Coastal and Marine Spatial Planning
Beck, M (contributing author). 2011. Strategic advice on designing and implementing coastal and marine spatial plans: A report from the NOAA Science Advisory Board. A global review of MSP efforts with official findings and recommendations for NOAA.
Helping Coastal Communities Adapt to Climate Change
Hale, L. Z., S Newkirk, M. Beck. 2011. Helping coastal communities adapt to climate change. Solutions 1:84-85.
Regional Threat-Based Networks for Estuaries
Merrifield, M., Hines, E., Liu, X., Beck, M. W. 2011. Building regional threat-based networks for estuaries in the western United States. PLoS ONE 6: e17407.
Oyster Reefs at Risk
Beck, M. W., R. D. Brumbaugh, L. Airoldi, L. D. Coen, C. Crawford, O. Defeo, G. J. Edgar, B. Hancock, M. Kay, H. Lenihan, M. W. Luckenbach, C. L. Toropova, G. Zhang, X. Guo. 2011. Oyster reefs at risk and recommendations for conservation, restoration and management. Bioscience 61(2):107-116.
Where Oysters Grew on Trees
Jacobsen, R. and M. Beck. 2010. Where oysters grew on trees. New York Times (July 24):WK10.
Marine Spatial Planning
Foley, M. M., B. Halpern, F. Micheli, M. Armsby, M. Caldwell, C. Crain, E. Prahler, D. Sivas, N. Rohr, M. W. Beck, M. Carr, L. Crowder, J. E. Duffy, S. Hacker, K. McLeod, C. Peterson, H. Regan, M. Ruckelshaus, P. Sandifer, R. Steneck. 2010. Guiding ecological principles for marine spatial planning. Marine Policy 34:955-966.
Marine Hard Bottom Communities
Airoldi, L., Connell, S. D., and Beck, M. W. 2009. The Loss of natural habitats and the addition of artificial substrata pp. 269-280 in M. Wahl (ed.), Marine Hard Bottom Communities. Springer-Verlag, Berlin.
Human Threats to Coastal Marine Environments
Crain, C., Halpern, B. S., Beck, M. W., Kappel, C. V. 2009. Understanding and managing human threats to the coastal marine environment. The Year in Ecology and Conservation Biology, Annals of the NY Academy of Science 1162: 39–62.
Ecosystem Based Adaptation
Hale, L. Z., Meliane, I., Davidson, S., Sandwith, T., Beck, M. W., Hoekstra, J., Spalding, M., Murawski, S., Cyr, N., Osgood, K., Hatziolos, M., Van Eijk, P., Davidson, N., Eichbaum, W., Dreus, C., Obura, D., Tamelander, J., Herr, D., McClennen, C., Marshall, P. 2009. Ecosystem-based adaptation in marine and coastal ecosystems. Renewable Resources Journal 25:21-28.
A National Biodiversity Agenda for Marine Conservation
Palumbi, S. R., P. A. Sandifer, J.D. Allan, Beck, M. W., D. G. Fautin, M. Fogarty, B. S. Halpern, L. S. Incze, J. Leong, E. Norse, J. Stachowicz, D. Wall. 2009. Managing for ocean biodiversity: creating a national biodiversity conservation agenda to sustain marine ecosystem services. Frontiers in Ecology 7:204–211.
Florida Marine and Estuarine Conservation
Geselbracht, L. R. Torres, G. S. Cumming, D. Dorfman, Beck, M., D. Shaw. 2009. Identification of a spatially efficient portfolio of priority conservation sites in marine and estuarine areas of Florida. Aquatic Conservation 19:408-420.
Oyster Conservation
Carranza, A., Defeo, O., Beck, M. W. 2009. Diversity, conservation status and threats for native oysters (Ostreidae) in the Atlantic and Caribbean coasts of South America. Aquatic Conservation 19:344-353.
Bioengineering Species
Carranza, A., Defeo, O., Beck, M. W., Castilla, J. C. 2009. Linking fisheries management and conservation in bioengineering species: the case of South American mussels (Mytilidae). Reviews in Fish Biology and Fisheries 19: 349-366. http://www.citeulike.org/article/4012724
Nursery Habitats for Mediterranean Coastal Fishes
Guidetti, P., M.W. Beck, S. Bussotti, A. Ciccolella, P. D’Ambrosio, G. Lembo, M.T. Spedicato, F. Boero. 2009. Nursery habitats for Mediterranean coastal fishes: the need for a quantitative approach. Biol. Mar. Mediterr. 16: 197-200
Websites and Web Based Tools
www.gulfrestorationds.org. 2011. Informing Restoration Investments in the Gulf of Mexico. Developed by Z. Ferdaña, M. W. Beck, L. Geselbracht, G. Raber, B. Gilmer, C. Shepard.
www.marineplanning.org. 2010. Practical approaches to coastal and marine decision making. Developed by Z. Ferdaña, M. W. Beck, B. Gilmer, V. Agostini, P. Taylor.
www.coastalresilience.org. 2009. Coastal Resilience Long Island: Adapting natural and human communities to sea level rise and coastal hazards. An interactive decision support system and mapper. Developed by Z. Ferdaña, S. Newkirk, M. W. Beck, B. Gilmer, V. Agostini, C. Shepard, D. Major, W. Brooks, J. Stone, G. Raber.
www.marineebm.org. 2007. Advancing marine ecosystem-based management: a toolkit for marine managers. Developed by M. W. Beck, Z. Ferdaña, D. Dorfman, C. Toropova.
Mike Beck is lead scientist for The Nature Conservancy's Global Marine Team and an adjunct faculty member in Ocean Sciences in the Center for Ocean Health at the University of California Santa Cruz. He works in the interface between marine science and policy. He has been a Fulbright Fellow and presently serves on Advisory Committees for the National Academy of Science (Marine Hydrokinetic Energy) and NOAA's Science Advisory Board (Ecosystem Science and Management). He was awarded a 2012 Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation to promote green infrastructure as a strategy for adapting to climate change and to support ecosystem recovery to help make communities less vulnerable to current coastal hazards.
Currently, Mike's work focuses on the development of decision support to inform (i) marine spatial planning in the U.S. and internationally, (ii) restoration investments following the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and (iii) the use of ecosystems for hazard mitigation and climate adaptation in the U.S., Caribbean and Micronesia. He continues to work broadly on marine regional planning; the nursery role of near-shore habitats such as kelp forests; the conservation and restoration of shellfish reefs and beds; and marine conservation agreements, including the lease and ownership of submerged lands.
His main areas of work include:
- coastal hazards mitigation and climate adaptation;
- habitat restoration and oyster reefs at risk; and
- marine spatial planning.
Mike has published numerous scientific papers and books. (See the publications tab for a list of his latest papers.) Read some of his recent popular writing here:
- The New York Times: Where Oysters Grew on Trees (op-ed with Rowan Jacobson)
- Cool Green Science: Nature's Most Overlooked Benefit: Reefs Breaking Waves
- Cool Green Science: An Ocean Away: Seeing the Japanese Tsunami Hit California
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Contact
Blythe Thomas
Director of Media
Phone: 703-841-8782
E-mail: bthomas@tnc.org
Connect with Mike
Areas of Expertise
- Climate adaptation
- Marine spatial planning
- Shellfish reefs/beds
- The intersection of marine science and policy