People of the Marine Issues Committee

Staff (alphabetically by first name)

• Alexandra Curtis, Sustainable Fisheries Scientist
• Rob Johnson, SeaChoice Atlantic Coordinator
• Sadie Beaton, Communications
• Shannon Arnold, Marine Coordinator
• Susanna Fuller, Marine Conservation Coordinator

 

Alexandra Curtis
Sustainable Fisheries Scientist
(902) 446-4840

Alex moved to Atlantic Canada from the United States a second time in 2007, having originally fallen in love with Newfoundland in 2004. She has followed a winding path through graduate (San Diego) and postdoctoral (Newfoundland) work in biological oceanography with a focus on fisheries applications, a policy fellowship in marine and fisheries-related foreign affairs in Washington DC, and then teaching and contract work at Acadia University. She is thrilled to have landed this opportunity to straddle science, outreach, and policy in marine fisheries. In her spare time, Alex wanders and bikes along the dykes near her home in the Valley, works in her veggie garden (or dreams about it in winter), seeks new swimming spots and hiking trails, and occasionally helps with the home renos.

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Rob Johnson
SeaChoice Atlantic Coordinator
(902) 446-4840

Rob has a diverse background of NGO and corporate program coordination and project management, as well as varied research experience. He has a master's degree in Natural Resource and Ecosystem Management from Stockholm University, and is a passionate advocate for the application of ecosystem-based management principles, resilience thinking applied to socio-ecological systems, and community-based adaptive management approaches to marine conservation. He strongly believes in the promotion of sustainable fisheries and sustainable seafood initiatives as important aspects of a wider marine and coastal management framework for healthy oceans that support healthy communities.

Rob is an avid kayaker, x-country skier, cyclist, runner and swimmer, and loves music and the ocean.

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Sadie Beaton
Communications
(902) 446-4840

Sadie Beaton grew up all over Guysborough county, including seven years in the fishing community of Canso, Nova Scotia where she could see a working wharf from her bedroom window. When the groundfish collapsed and the fish plant closed, Sadie remembers participating in protests with the community. She eventually moved to Halifax where she got a B.A. in English from Kings College and a Masters in Resource and Environmental Management from Dalhousie University. Sadie has been a part of the Ecology Action Centre marine team since 2004 when she began to promote sustainable seafood to local restaurants. In October of 2006, Sadie drove a life size groundfish dragger net to Ottawa on the back of a rickety trailer, displaying its immensity to members of Parliament to raise awareness about the impacts of deep sea trawling. Since then she has worked with the Ecology Action Centre on issues from beach management to community conservation and direct marketing research.  These days, she has been thrilled to be working to help facilitate the start-up of a small fishing co-operative to carry out the first Community Supported Fishery in Atlantic Canada.

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Shannon Arnold
Marine Conservation Coordinator
(902) 446-4840

After growing up in Ontario, a land of lakes and rivers, Shannon Arnold headed out West to broaden her educational horizons. It was on the Pacific coast that she began to be lured by the ocean. She has since lived and worked on five different oceans and seas around the world and due to an obsession with scuba diving has also spent a fair amount of time immersed in them! A wide variety of work in education, outdoor programming, management and research, coupled with social and environmental justice work, has led her towards a career in marine conservation and coastal livelihood issues. The alarming state of the world’s oceans and fisheries was a driving force behind her return to school in Canada and she believes strongly in helping communities regain control over resources and determining sustainable ways forward. After recently completing her Masters of Environmental Studies from York University and finishing up research in the Philippines, she is very happy to have landed on the East coast and is set to get to know the Atlantic Ocean more intimately (being a avid canoer, she is also looking forward to exploring Nova Scotia’s lake and rivers!).

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Susanna Fuller
Marine Conservation Coordinator
(902) 446-4840

Growing up by the ocean on Cape Breton Island, Susanna has always been at home in or near the water, spending her formative years sailing, swimming, and fishing perch by the wharf.  Susanna heard news of the pending Atlantic cod collapse during a six month sailing expedition in 1991, steering her towards a career in marine conservation. She has done significant research on bycatch and habitat issues in fisheries, leading to her PhD work on the effects of bottom trawling on sponges in the North Atlantic.

Susanna has been an active member of the Ecology Action Centre for over a decade, working on marine, transportation, and green building issues, editing the Centre’s quarterly publication, and serving as Chair of the Board for three years. She became the Marine Conservation Coordinator in 2006. This past year she was recognized for her tireless effort on behalf of the environment and communities with an “Activist of the Year” award from Halifax’s weekly paper. Susanna finds time to recharge her batteries by enjoying gardening, cycling, and a fine pair of boots, among other things. An Islander through and through, she finds solace both in the frenetic bustle of downtown Manhattan and the serenity of small coastal communities like Ramea, Newfoundland.

 

 

Marine Issues Committee

Phone: (902) 446-4840
Fax: (902) 405-3716

Are you interested in mysterious sea creatures, fishing boats and gear, tasty and sustainably caught seafood dishes, or the unique and beautiful Sable Island?  Then you’ll be in good company at our monthly Marine Issues Committee (MIC) at the Ecology Action Centre on the last Tuesday of every month at 5:30.

*note:  the July MIC meeting has been cancelled.  Our next meeting will be August 31