Leonard and Jayne Abess Center for Ecosystem Science and Policy

Abess Center-EVR PhD students and presenters Austin Wells and Gabriella Berman, with Dr. Kilan Bishop, center, at AGU’s Ocean Sciences Meeting in Glasgow, Scotland.

The UM School of Law Environmental Law Program hosted Books & Beverages with UM Law alumni author Dr. Jesse Keenan. Joined by Dr. Katharine Mach, chair of the Environmental Science and Policy program at the Rosenstiel School and Abess Center faculty affiliate, Keenan discussed key themes from his book, North: The Future of Post-Climate America (Oxford University Press, 2025). The Abess Center co-sponsored the event.

A recent study led by Abess-EVR PhD candidate Emily Yeager reveals how manta rays form unique interactions with other fishes in South Florida waters—highlighting their complex ecological interactions between species that support ocean life.

📸: Bryant Turffs

Full story:

Manta rays create mobile ecosystems, study finds A new study reveals how manta rays form unique interactions with other fishes in South Florida waters—highlighting their complex ecological interactions between species that support ocean life.

Dr. Kilan Bishop, Asst. Professor in the University of Miami Rosenstiel School Dept. Environmental Science & Policy (EVR) and Abess Center graduate advisor and faculty affiliate, presented at the Abess Center as part of the EVR Seminar Series: “Chronic Disease in a Changing Climate: Advancing Climate-Responsive Cancer Care and Prevention.”

First-year Abess-EVR PhD student Elizabeth Perez participated in archaeological fieldwork at Ancestral/prehistoric sites on Key Largo, led by her advisor, Dr. Traci Ardren. Elizabeth will be analyzing the fish bones to identify whether or not there was resource depletion at any point in the pre-European occupation of the Keys.

Sindhura Polepalli, Abess Center Ph.D. student and Johnson Center for Marine Conservation researcher, participated in the negotiations at the 83rd Extraordinary Session of the Marine Environment Protection Committee (MEPC) of the International Maritime Organization (IMO) this month in London. Prior to Sindhura’s admission to the Abess Ph.D. Program, she was a student of international maritime law and then served in the Indian maritime administration.

Photo 1: Sindhura attends the busy plenary session during the final day of MEPC-ES2, where the future of international shipping transition was being shaped in real time with a year-long adjournment.
Photo 3: Sindhura with IMO Secretary General Arsenio Dominguez

The ECS undergraduate program recently hosted an Environmental Open House at the Abess Center. Several organizations from around campus and the community shared opportunities for students to get involved with environmental research and advocacy.

Excellent feature on the Abess Center's 'Super Heat Trio'!

‘Super Heat Trio’ examines the impacts of intense indoor heat A trio of University of Miami researchers placed sensors in nearly 60 residences across Miami-Dade County, discovering many instances in which indoor temperatures were hotter than those outside, as residents struggled to pay the high cost of cooling their homes.

The Resilience 365 Conference, as part of Miami Climate Week, is coming up March 24-25 at UM! Check it out:

resilience.miami.edu The UM Climate Resilience Institute, in partnership with Miami Dade County, will host a two-day conference to bring together communities and thought leaders to catalyze action related to driving tech innovation, financing resilience infrastructure, and fostering healthy communities. The conference i...

Abess-EVR PhD program director, Dr. Jennifer Jacquet, and Abess-EVR PhD student, Spencer Roberts, featured in News@TheU:

Dangers that lurk beyond the wilds Using a new web crawler they developed, two University of Miami researchers and others conducted an extensive study on the scale and scope of the online trade of endangered species.

Dr. Jennifer Jacquet, Abess-EVR PhD program director, lead author on article published today: "Early US meat industry knowledge and response to global warming"

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