WSG staff receive 2026 College of the Environment awards
Washington Sea Grant is happy to share that five staff members have been selected for 2026 UW College of the Environment awards. Each year, the University of Washington’s College of the Environment recognizes outstanding individuals and teams who have made significant contributions to the college and the communities they serve. Nominations are solicited College-wide.
Outstanding Community Impact Award: WSG Fisheries Team
The Outstanding Community Impact Award recognizes stakeholder engagement that stimulates, inspires and drives interactive uses of environmental science and information to impact the broader community. Nominators put forward WSG’s Fisheries Team for their “invaluable stakeholder engagement and services through which they strengthen this important industry and improve the lives of the people who work within it.” The Fisheries Team includes Bridget Trosin, Brandii O’Reagan, Robert Maw and Jenna Keeton.
Skills and Drills course focused on hands-on techniques essential to success in a fishing job, such as welding, fiberglass repairs, and navigation. The program aimed to make entrants into the industry more competitive by developing skills not often taught elsewhere. In December, WSG held the first Washington Fishermen’s Conference in Westport. Bringing together newcomers and experienced fishermen alike, this two-day convention included speakers, meet-and-greets, and Q&As specially tailored to a fishing audience to highlight and improve access to the industry. “Our commercial fishermen are an important part of Washington’s maritime culture, and we need more of them,” Trosin told The Daily World.
The Fisheries Team supports the fishing industry through the consumer side as well, increasing seafood education between producers and consumers to promote safe, sustainably caught and confidently bought local seafood. In partnership with fisheries specialists from Oregon and California Sea Grants, the Fisheries Team recently launched the Discover West Coast Seafood website, which shares information on topics from sourcing to preparing seafood, along with profiles on those who harvest it. Access to information about sustainably sourced seafood and how to prepare it can encourage consumers to connect with local seafood producers.
Finally, the WSG Fisheries team travels the Washington coast to deliver life-saving training programs directly to the communities that need it. Nominators highlighted continued efforts to develop longstanding working relationships with the many stakeholders of Washington waters; brokering lane agreements between crabbers and towboat operators; and building partnerships of mutual understanding, respect, and trust.
Outstanding Commitment to Inclusive Excellence Award: Dr. Lisa Watkins
This award recognizes a commitment to supporting the diversity of backgrounds, perspectives and experiences that make up our students, postdocs, staff, faculty and collaborators in the College, above and beyond the nominee’s position description. This year, the College of the Environment presented two individuals with this award, including WSG community science specialist Dr. Lisa Watkins).
Lisa is a core member of WSG Crab Team. Her nomination describes her as “a gifted collaborator, a clear-eyed strategist, a compassionate mentor, and a steady, thoughtful community science leader.” She demonstrates incredible leadership through Molt Search, part of WSG Crab Team’s outreach and monitoring efforts to protect Washington shorelines and nearshore ecosystems from invasive European green crab. Molt Search’s volunteer-driven program is a reality thanks to Lisa’s tireless drive, resulting in over 240 individual participants in the last year. Her colleagues note that Lisa fundamentally understands how to build community science programs, stating, “Lisa does an excellent job of cultivating potential partners. She’s always enthusiastic and supportive in her communications with them.”
In addition to her leadership of Molt Search, Lisa helps coordinate a network of more than 300 volunteers over 67 monitoring sites. She has been instrumental in the development of WSG Crab Team’s student assistant program, hiring, supervising, and managing projects for three students. “Her ability to build partnerships, empower volunteers, guide students, and inspire public engagement comes from a lifetime spent translating scientific knowledge into community benefit,” her nominators shared. She is a proactive problem solver and a reliable teammate to her colleagues who produces exceptionally high-quality work.
Beyond Crab Team, Lisa is a steering committee member for Washington’s Marine Debris Action Plan and an appointed member of Seattle Public Utilities’ Solid Waste Advisory Committee. These roles reflect her credibility and trustworthiness, earned across agencies.
Congratulations to Bridget Trosin, Jenna Keeton, Robert Maw, Brandii O’Reagan and Lisa Watkins! We are so thankful to work with you and so proud of your accomplishments.
Read more about the 2026 College of the Environment awardees.