Mikaela Freeman

About Mikaela Freeman

I am a research scientist at Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in the Coastal Science Division. My work focuses on marine renewable energy, including environmental effects, policy and regulations, international collaboration, stakeholder engagement, and opportunities for co-locating offshore aquaculture and marine renewable energy. I received my Masters of Marine Affairs from the University of Washington\'s School of Marine and Environmental Affairs (SMEA) in 2015. While studying at SMEA I completed my masters thesis on marine spatial planning in Washington (Assessing potential spatial and temporal conflicts in Washington\'s marine waters, Freeman et al. My areas of interest are conservation of coastal environments with an emphasis on human dimensions, sustainable resource use, marine spatial planning, outreach and engagement, fisheries management, and the interface between science, policy, and law.

Experience

1. Research Scientist

   Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

   May 2018 — Present · Seattle, WA, US

   Researcher in PNNL\'s Energy and Environment Directorate as part of the Coastal Science Division focused on environmental and socioeconomic effects of marine renewable energy, co-locating offshore aquaculture and marine renewable energy, and stakeholder and community engagement for marine renewable energy and offshore wind. Three main areas of my work include: Support for the OES-Environmental initiative where I lead research and tasks to coordinate and collaborate with 16 nations to better understand environmental effects of marine renewable energy and alleviate barriers to permitting. I lead the outreach effort, which includes creating resources and materials for various audiences, conducting regulatory surveys, collaborating with international representatives and state/federal partners, and managing and coordinating staff;Co-lead of several projects to assess the opportunity to co-locate aquaculture with marine renewable energy. This work includes carrying out spatial analysis, fieldwork, feasibility assessments, outreach and engagement with stakeholders including the marine renewable energy and aquaculture industries, local communities, federal and state agencies. Serve as project manager for several research projects within the Coastal Sciences Division. This role includes organizing and managing interdisciplinary teams of 15-20 staff, creating budgets and managing finances, coordinating with US Department of Energy, and making sure projects are well executed and accomplish deliverables. Also served as a co-chair (20••••23) for PNNL\'s Employee Resource Group, SPARK, which supports women and gender diverse staff, and currently serve on SPARK\'s Core Team (2023-present).

Education

• University of Washington

  Master’s Degree, Marine and Environmental Affairs

  2013 — 2015

• The School for Field Studies

  Marine Resource Management and Policy

• University of Puget Sound

  Bachelor of Science, Natural Science - Biology

  2008 — 2012

Skills

• Event Planning
• Environmental Education
• Public Speaking
• Marine Conservation
• Fundraising
• Powerpoint
• Microsoft Excel
• Teaching
• Community Outreach
• Social Media
• Gis
• Environmental Policy
• Microsoft Word
• Microsoft Office
• Biology
• Conservation Issues
• Research
• Arcgis