Jennifer Ewald

Jennifer has nearly three decades of experience in operational and applied Marine Science, working along the US coasts as a physical oceanographer, marine surveyor, naturalist and educator. At the University of Rhode Island, Graduate School of Oceanography and as an Oceanographer with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA); her focus was on the development of survey methods and oceanographic buoys. Realizing the challenge of collecting coastal marine data, and the value of ancillary data to aid in ecosystem analysis, she incorporated chemical and biological parameters, worked with sediment transport, marine acoustics and added land based measurements in the analysis. With over 200 buoy deployments and 95% recovery rate; she received the Department of Commerce Bronze Medal for the revitalization of the National Current Observation Program. In 2007, Ewald left NOAA for the Prince William Sound Science Center where Community engagement and disaster response became a critical component in understanding how the data may be used, while experiencing the 20th anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil spill aftermath in the small remote town most affected.

May 2010, Ewald was appointed as a Physical Oceanographer with Minerals Management Service, the oil was still flowing from the Deep-Water Horizon disaster.  With the formation of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Office of Environmental Programs in Washington, D.C; she began service under the Chief Environmental Officer (CEO), serving in many capacities.  As duties matured, two positions were developed into full time employees. First, the Tribal Liaison Coordinator working with Native American Tribes, consulting on topics such as paleo-cultural submerged sites, protecting land and water, air quality and culturally and spiritually significant places.  The second position, Chief of Staff to the CEO and National Academy of Sciences Program Manager.  Ewald served as the Environmental Justice (EJ) Coordinator until 2021 when was appointed as Science Communication Outreach Liaison with a focus on building capacity for science translation and delivering complicated subject matter to the public. Ewald is alumni of Coastal Carolina University with a B.S. in Marine Science.

Jennifer lives near the Chesapeake Bay and is passionate about serving her community as a mental health advocate and volunteer in equine therapy sessions and service dogs in training for veterans.