PhD Student
Pronouns: she/her
Education
MS, California State University, Monterey Bay
BS,
Biology,
Oregon State University
Bio
Kinsey's research explores the relationships among marine species distributions, changing oceanographic conditions, and human uses of the ocean. She is particularly interested in how dynamic ocean management can mitigate potential conflicts arising from fisheries bycatch, marine protected areas (MPAs), and offshore wind development.
Kinsey earned her M.S. from Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, where she worked on projects that informed MPA effectiveness and fisheries management. Her thesis investigated species-habitat associations and the efficacy of species distribution models for continental shelf fishes off California. Her desire to better understand the science-policy interface led her to Sacramento, where she completed a California Sea Grant State Fellowship with the California Fish and Game Commission. During her fellowship, she designed a process to assess if aquaculture leases serve the public interest, synthesized new MPA proposals, and contributed to an evaluation of bycatch in California's set gill net fisheries. This work solidified her interest in developing creative solutions to pressing conservation and management problems. Before receiving her M.S., Kinsey's research took her across the globe to study whale shark movement patterns in the Philippines, time place learning in lemon sharks in the Bahamas, and the ecological impacts of sea star wasting syndrome on Oregon's intertidal organisms.
Year Admitted
2024
Faculty Advisors
Steve Gaines