Kathryn Beheshti

C&E Section Role: Co-chair

Kathryn (Kat) Beheshti is an Assistant Researcher at the Marine Science Institute at the University of California, Santa Barbara. There she serves as a Co-PI on the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station Mitigation Monitoring Program where she manages two long-term monitoring programs, the world’s largest artificial reef (Wheeler North Reef), located off the coast of San Clemente, CA and a 150 acre wetland restoration in Del Mar, CA. In this role, she interacts regularly with the public, industry, and relevant state agencies.

Kat received her PhD in 2021 from the University of California, Santa Cruz. After finishing her dissertation she worked for the Ocean Protection Council as their California SeaGrant State Fellow. At OPC, Kat continued to refine her science communication skills by producing multiple video blogs and written pieces on recently funded coastal resilience projects across the coast of California. Kat is committed to conducting science that is accessible and engages a wide audience. As co-chair of the ESA C&E section she seeks to broaden the reach of the Section to all of ESA‘s members. She believes that we are at a point where we cannot afford to poorly communicate the science we lead and instead must prioritize thoughtful science communication and engagement.