Katherine Kahl

Extension Associate Professor

Director, UMass Amherst Gloucester Marine Station

Co-Lead MassMarsh

Co-Lead MA Salt Marsh Working Group

Faculty
Katherine Kahl
Contact
Email
Email
Phone
Location
Gloucester Marine Station
932 Washington Street, PO Box 6013
Gloucester, MA 01930

Primary Interests

As Extension faculty based full time at the UMass Amherst Gloucester Marine Station (GMS), Katie's work focuses on bridging university capacity and strategies at the intersection of sustainable fisheries & seafood, climate resilience, marine ecology, and blue economy & regional economic development. The research and implementation approaches developed at GMS are demonstrating application opportunities for other North-of-Boston and New England geographies and at broader scales. Working with a team of faculty and stakeholders, we are re-envisioning what GMS can be for our faculty and students, and for local and regional partnerships and places.

Katie's professional experience has spanned conservation policy, local and regional green infrastructure applications and community engagement, climate change research and adaptation, and managing coastal conservation planning and implementation strategies. The common thread through these experiences has been Katie's ability to connect people, connect project strategies to achieve meaningful outcomes, to lead teams, and to build partnerships around common goals.

 

Current Integrated Research & Extension Areas of Focus

  • Regional Economic Development & North Shore Blue Economy: Understanding how projected flood impacts will affect regional, resilient economies, jobs, and properties in Essex County. Current work is with the NOAA Office for Coastal Management's economics team, MA Office of Coastal Zone Management, and the 34 cities and towns in Essex County, MA. A 2021 North Shore Blue Economy study was the foundation for ongoing work.  
  • MassMarsh: Massachusetts' Long-term Salt Marsh Resilience Research & Monitoring Program: The Commonwealth of Massachusetts has tasked a transdisciplinary UMass Amherst team with establishing a process for working with partners to develop and evaluate salt marsh condition, threats, and restoration technique efficacy in specific locations across the state. The first year of work (2024-25) will establish a framework for a long-term strategy. UMass Amherst will house and communicate salt marsh monitoring data and findings.
  • Salt Marsh Working Group: The Mass ECAN Salt Marsh Working Group is comprised of over 140 state, federal, nonprofit, and university researchers and coastal natural resource managers, spanning Massachusetts and with members from Rhode Island, New Hampshire and Maine. The SMWG is co-led by the UMass Amherst Gloucester Marine Station and the MA Office of Coastal Zone Management 
  • Gloucester Marine Station: Resilience Research & Demonstration Area: The UMass Amherst Gloucester Marine Station uses its expansive waterfront location, exceptional interdisciplinary faculty, and broad support network, to advance the science and practice of coastal and marine resilience; train the next generation of scientists; and support regional economic development. A joint infrastructure investment from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and UMass is a first step in launching enhanced ocean-front facility for the next generation of marine and coastal scientists and leaders.  

 

Recent Publications and Reports

Research Areas

Natural Resources Conservation
Environmental Conservation,
Fisheries Ecology & Conservation,
Wildlife Ecology & Conservation,
Climate change,
Environmental Policy,
Regional Economic Development