In recent years, global concern has grown regarding the degradation of marine ecosystems. Humanity has greatly benefited from the oceans, underscoring the constant need for restoration and conservation of marine ecosystems. International cooperation is essential for protecting the oceans, with Japan, an island nation surrounded by the sea, playing…

This dissertation features a set of three sub-studies situated within a larger Critical Participatory Ethnography investigating how participatory science unfolds between youth and scientists to address issues of marine plastic pollution. Collectively the papers provide insights into how to navigate the slippery, but necessary, terrain of teaching…

Giant kelp ("Macrocystis pyrifera") forests are icons of marine beauty, acting as critical marine ecosystems with great ecological and economic value. Kelp forests are hot spots for biodiversity and provide myriad ecosystem services such as nursery habitat for commercial fisheries, nutrient cycling, wave attenuation, as well as…

Climate change portends significant harms to humans and biodiversity but public knowledge of relevant scientific information remains limited. As societal changes and investment are essential to addressing anthropogenic climate change, efforts to better promote both civic science literacy and public awareness of climate change impacts are urgently…

The app 'Roteiro Entre-Marés' offers digital itineraries for exploring intertidal zones, such as the rocky platform of the Avencas Marine Protected Area. As users travel through the intertidal area, several challenges emphasising the biodiversity and environmental issues are presented. Eighth-grade students (n=63) used this application and were…

A common question posed to environmental scientists by nonscientists, particularly policymakers, is the following: In a world that is globally warmer, what will the new climate be like in specific geographical regions? This question has been and continues to be addressed by computer modeling, a technique that is out of reach for vast majority of…

The primary question of my dissertation is, "Does venom possess a microbiome specific to it as an ecosystem, and why?" Given the limited amount of literature on venom microbiomes, I selected the California Cone Snail, "Californiconus californicus" as a proposed, wild model system for studying venom-microbe interactions in the…

Biomimicric implementations provide positive contributions to the development of many abilities such as problem solving, creative thinking and productivity by enabling students to look at nature from a different perspective. For this reason, in this study, it was investigated how the biomimicric applications of the macro, micro, and sub-micro…

One in four Australian undergraduate students participates in learning abroad during their study. Since 2012, faculty-led mobility programmes have overtaken exchange programs to become the most popular outbound mobility type in Australia. However, little has been known about how faculty-led short-term mobility programmes affect students'…

Oceans play an important role in weather and climate through transfers of heat and moisture to the atmosphere, and by moving heat and climate-relevant molecules like carbon dioxide around the globe. Energy also transfers from the atmosphere to the surface of the ocean, traveling down through the water column creating ocean currents that transport…

This paper outlines an initial learning progression for the use of evidence to support scientific arguments in the context of decision-making. Use of evidence is a central feature of knowledge evaluation and, therefore, of argumentation. The proposal is based on the literature on argumentation and use of evidence in decision-making contexts. The…

This research aims at analyzing the effectiveness of environmentally-based science learning to improve the environmentally friendly character of the students in the coastal area. This was experimental research with one group pre-test -- post-test design. A total of 83 elementary students from the coastal area participated as a sample in this…

Gastropods are a major component of modern marine ecosystems and can be found in nearly every type of marine ecosystem. They experienced their first notable radiation during the Great Ordovician Biodiversification Event (~470 Ma), during which their diversity tripled. This study examines the gastropod assemblage preserved in the Basin and Range…

Microbial processes in the deep biosphere affect marine sediments, such as the formation of gas hydrate deposits. Gas hydrate deposits offer a large source of natural gas with the potential to augment energy reserves and affect climate and seafloor stability. Despite the significant interdependence between life and geology in the ocean, coverage…

Scientific research is undergoing a "big data" revolution, as probes deployed in oceans, the atmosphere, and outer space provide near real-time data streams. As more and more data sets such as Ocean Tracks become available online, opportunities to engage students in the "Next Generation Science Standards" (NGSS Lead States…