Science Advisory Board

The Healing Our Waters-Great Lakes Coalition (the Coalition) and the University of Michigan Water Center have partnered to relaunch the Science Advisory Board (SAB) for the Coalition. 

As the federal government plays a smaller role in science-driven decision making and funding for Great Lakes research diminishes, our collective ability to envision and enact a more resilient, equitable future for the Great Lakes is more urgent than ever. We have assembled a group of 17 leading natural and social scientists and experts in Indigenous Knowledge and community-engaged research. The SAB will: 

  • Guide the Coalition’s priorities and contribute science to biannual policy platforms and strategic planning processes.   

  • Serve as a trusted resource for rapid, science-based input to Congressional staff, journalists, and the broader community in times of urgent policy and budget challenges.  

  • Act as a “one-stop shop” connecting Coalition members to accessible scientific research and expertise across disciplines and communities.

  • Help set a bold new agenda for the region’s and Coalition’s future.

Science Advisory Board Members: 

  • Dr. Bopaiah Biddanda, Professor of Water Resources, Grand Valley State University Robert B. Annis Water Resources Institute

  • Dr. Stuart Carlton, Research Assistant Professor, Purdue Department of Forestry & Natural Resources and Director, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant

  • Dr. Greg Dick, Director, Cooperative Institute for Great Lakes Research and Professor, University of Michigan Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences and School for Environment and Sustainability

  • Frank Ettawageshik, Executive Director, United Tribes of Michigan, and President, Association on American Indian Affairs

  • Dr. Jessica Fayne, Assistant Professor, University of Michigan Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences and Climate and Space Sciences and Engineering

  • Dr. Andrew Gronewold, Lead Principal Investigator (U.S.), Global Centre for Climate Change Impacts on Transboundary Waters and Associate Professor, University of Michigan School for Environment and Sustainability 

  • Dr. Joel Hoffman, Director of Research, University of Minnesota Natural Resources Research Institute

  • Dr. Rachel Havrelock, Director, The Freshwater Lab & Professor, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Illinois Chicago

  • Dr. Sara Hughes, Senior Policy Researcher, RAND and Professor of Policy Analysis, RAND School of Public Policy

  • Dr. Donna Kashian, Professor of Biological Sciences, Wayne State University and Director of Environmental Sciences and United Nation's Regional Center of Expertise Detroit-Windsor

  • Dr. Gail Krantzberg, Professor Emeritus, McMaster University, Lead Investigator (Canada), Global Centre for Climate Change Impacts on Transboundary Waters, and Lead Investigator, Climate Adaptation and Resilience Strategy 

  • Deborah H. Lee, PE, PH, BC.WRE, F.ASCE, ENV SP, Retired, former Director, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory

  • Dr. Chelsea Rochman, Associate Professor, Department of Ecology & Evolutionary Biology, University of Toronto

  • Derek Schlea, PE, Principal and Senior Agricultural and Ecological Engineer, LimnoTech

  • Dr. Katie Stammler, Adjunct Associate Professor, University of Windsor and Water Quality Scientist/Source Water Protection Project Manager, Essex Region Conservation Authority 

  • Heather Stirratt, Water and Agriculture Director, The Nature Conservancy

  • Russ Strach, Retired, former Director, United States Geological Survey's Great Lakes Science Center

The Coalition and the Water Center are excited for this next phase of the SAB. For questions about the SAB, please reach out to Alison Bressler (asbressl@umich.edu) at the Water Center and/or Laura Rubin (rubinl@nwf.org) at the Coalition.