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Changing Waters with Jan Newton

Dr. Jan Newton is a biological oceanographer whose lifelong love of the Washington coast propelled her to an internationally recognized career. She shares her story, the importance of working together to address big challenges, and her vision for the future.

Serendipity launches a career

Jan Newton is a world expert in ocean change and human impacts to marine systems. It started in her hometown of Seattle, where she spent her childhood on her parents’ 17-ft boat and exploring the beaches near the San Juan Islands and Puget Sound, Washington. Newton remembers this time fondly, saying “the love for nature, the beach and sea was always part of me.” Years later, unsure what to do with her undergraduate science degree, she made the trip to the University of Washington to apply for graduate school in zoology. Having missed the program’s deadline, they pointed her to the oceanography department. There she found her scientific home, with her work focused on climate and human influences on ocean processes.

Jan now wears many hats - scientist, leader, and mentor. She is a senior principal Oceanographer at the Applied Physics Lab at the University of Washington and an affiliate professor in the UW School of Oceanography and School of Marine and Environmental Affairs. She serves as Co-director for Washington Ocean Acidification Center and is the Executive Director of the Northwest Association of Networked Ocean Observing Systems (NANOOS), one of the nation’s regional ocean observing networks, and a Co-chair of the Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network (GOA-ON).

Tackling global problems at home, together

Jan’s work continues in Puget Sound and off the Washington coast, which experience changing ocean conditions that impact both natural ecosystems and the people who depend on them. Ocean acidification, which is the change in ocean chemistry caused by the ocean’s absorption of carbon from the atmosphere, is one impactful change happening in this system. “When you study ocean acidification, you’re really studying just about everything: physics, chemistry, biology.” Early on, she recognized that building relationships and collaborating with others is essential for tackling these challenges. “Because ocean acidification was relatively new and increasingly developing as a scientific area of inquiry, it caught my interest as an early career scientist - thinking about implications and opportunities to combine forces to study it more fully.” Partnering and making connections to diverse perspectives is one of Jan’s great talents.

A hard shell to crack. Along the U.S. west coast, shellfish growers encountered devastating impacts to the industry with ocean acidification impacting young oyster survival. Newton recognized this hardship, but also the learning opportunity it presented, saying, “we knew we could aid shellfish growers with observations and forecasts, but also that their experience with the shellfish under different conditions had much to teach us.” As a result, Jan and other scientists partner with industry members to better understand ocean acidification impacts to shellfish and to help find ways for the industry to adapt.

Taking a holistic, integrative approach. Jan identifies her partnerships with Indigenous peoples, who have been ocean observers since time immemorial, as some of her most rewarding work. She has learned from the full-system knowledge held by native tribes, saying “Indigenous communities are explicitly place-based and culturally take a holistic, integrative view. That’s exactly the kind of mindset that is helpful for understanding and addressing ocean acidification.” Through these partnerships, solutions are being co-developed for adapting to ocean change.

Fostering hope for the future

Jan speaks of her advisor and mentor, Carl Lorenzen, with fond appreciation. Her career was greatly influenced by his big picture perspective and the connections he made between multiple disciplines, while also integrating the many details that matter. Now, as a mentor herself, Jan hopes to encourage young scientists, saying “trust in yourself, study hard, and recognize that you’ll get this.

Stepping onto that first ship and advice for budding oceanographers 

Jan learned how to trust herself and abilities after stepping onto her first ship. She recollects her first experience thinking, “wow, okay, it’s me, my wherewithal, and the resources that are in front of me. There’s nothing like being out in nature and having to make it work.” 

Now, Jan is "inspired by the energy and insights that students bring.” She has “confidence that the next generations will increase knowledge in ways that we can only dare to imagine. The ship is in good hands.

Photo Credits (Banner: Dan Hannafious; Beach: Jan Newton; Cha'ba Buoy: Jan Newton; Shipside R/V Carson: Dan Hannafious)

Credits:

Banner: Dan Hannafious Beach: Jan Newton Cha'ba Buoy: Jan Newton Shipside: Dan Hannafious