We work with communities, government agencies, companies, and NGOs to develop and guide climate goals supported by ocean-based habitat recovery opportunities

Focal areas include:

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COASTAL CARBON

What: How can blue carbon habitats (salt marshes, seagrass meadows, mangroves, and macroalgae) mitigate climate change by sequestering carbon?
How: Field, lab, and modeling approaches (e.g., sediment cores, sensors, analytical lab work)
For whom: Data are incorporated into national and sub-national climate action plans and into developing carbon offset programs. Institutional collaborators on this work include scientists with the University of Oxford, UC Davis, and UC Santa Barbara, among others.
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HABITAT RESTORATION




What: We work on coastal habitat restoration projects, including seagrass meadows, kelp forests, coral reefs and more.
How: Habitat monitoring and data collection, data analysis and reporting to understand restoration outcomes and success.
For whom: Restoration is conducted for mitigation, community-led projects, or state and federal initiatives. We also work with restoration communities, stakeholders, and rightsholders to understand restoration implications and efficacy, with an eye towards meeting habitat protection and coverage goals (e.g., 30x30 initiatives).
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AQUACULTURE


What: We investigate how sustainable aquaculture can build coastal community resilience. (e.g., How can shellfish farmers adapt to Ocean Acidification (OA)? How can marine primary producers ameliorate OA? How can seaweed culture be used for climate resilience?)
How: Community interviews, in situ data, observation-based approaches, etc
For whom: We work alongside shellfish harvesters, aquaculturists, and communities that interact with shellfish across the U.S west coast.
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BIODIVERSITY


What: We explore biodiversity by addressing questions such as - what forces (connectivity, local evolution) drive biodiversity in complex ecosystems? Can metrics of habitat structure be used to assess habitat function (i.e., biodiversity)?
How: This work is conducted through novel techniques (e.g., eDNA) and traditional field-based monitoring approaches in a multitude of coastal habitats.
For whom: This work is conducted with research collaborators across the globe, and is rapidly advancing as novel mechanisms to support and finance biodiversity develop.

selected works and publications

Peer-reviewed papers
1. Ward, M. Dibble, C. D., Lilley, R.J., Lynch, J., McGlathery, K., Seddon, N., Strong, A., Wedding, L. Management Approach Matters: Meeting Seagrass Recovery and Carbon Mitigation Goals. Nature: Ocean Sustainability. 2025. https://www.nature.com/articles/s44183-025-00111-y

2. Ward, M. Costa, M., Ricart, A., Wedding, L., Macreadie, P., Crooks, S. Where we’ve come from and where we’re going: Blue carbon in a new era of carbon accounting. (2025). Annual Reviews. (In Review).

3. Zulian. M., A... Ward, M. Assessing benthic invertebrate vulnerability to ocean acidification and de-oxygenation in California: The importance of effective oceanographic monitoring networks. (2025). PLOS One. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0317906.

4. Ryder. A., Edwards, M.A, Ward, M., W. Oechel. Seasonal patterns of community metabolism in the eelgrass (Zostera marina) meadows of San Diego Bay. (2025). Estuaries and Coasts. (In Review).

5. Janousek, C....Ward, M., et al. Blue Carbon Stocks Along the Pacific Coast of North America Are Mainly Driven by Local Rather Than Regional Factors. Global Biogeochemical Cycles. 2025. https://doi.org/10.1029/2024GB008239

6. Palola, P., ... Ward, M., et al. Simulation-based inference advances water quality mapping in shallow coral reef environments. Royal Society Open Science. 2025. https://royalsocietypublishing.org/doi/10.1098/rsos.241471

7. Wright, R.... Ward, M. et al. Biophysical drivers of coral reef community structure across a tropical benthic seascape. Marine Biodiversity (In Review). 

8. Capece, L., Griffin, A.J., Ward, M., Ricart, A. M., Shukla, P., Lobrutto, J., Hill, T. M. Multi-scale drivers of variability in blue carbon stocks along the Pacific coast of North America. Global Biogeochemical Cycles (In Review).

9. Green, K. Ward, M., Spalding, A. K., Levine, A., Rice, L.  R. Selgrath, J. C. Pathways to (Climate) Adaptation for Shellfish Aquaculture on the US West coast. Ecology and Society (In Review). 

10. Wolters, E. Ward, M., Spalding, A. K., et al..  Governance and Adaptation in West Coast Shellfisheries: How investment in strategic actions can build resilience to ocean acidification. Marine Policy (2024). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2024.106484

11. Maxwell, T... Ward, M. et al., Worthington, T. A. Global dataset of soil organic carbon in tidal marshes. (2023). Nature: Sci Data 10, 797 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-023-02633-x

12. Ward, M, and K. Beheshti. “Lessons Learned from over Thirty Years of Eelgrass Restoration on the US West Coast.” Ecosphere e4642, (2023). https://doi.org/10.1002/ecs2.4642

13. Hamilton, S. L., Kennedy, E., Zulian, M., Hill, T. M., Gaylord, B., Sanford, E., Ricart, A. M., Ward, M., Spalding, A. K., and Kroeker, K. Variable exposure to low pH, hypoxia, and increased temperatures across a marine protected area network has implications for ocean protection. ICES Journal of Marine Science, fsad 120, (2023). https://doi.org/10.1093/icesjms/fsad120

14. Green, K. M., Spalding, A. K, Ward, M., Levine, A., Hamilton, S., and Rice, L. Oregon shellfish farmers: Perceptions of stressors, adaptive strategies, and policy linkages. Ocean & Coastal Management (234) 106475, (2023). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman

15. Kennedy. E.G..., Ward, M., et al. A high-resolution synthesis dataset for multistressor analyses along the U.S. West Coast. Earth System Science Data (2023). https://doi.org/10.5194/essd-2023-205

16. Ward, M., Spalding, A. K., Levine, A. L., and Wolters, E. A. California shellfish farmers: Perceptions of changing ocean conditions and strategies for adaptive capacity. Ocean & Coastal Management (225) 106 -155, (2022).  https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2022.106155.
(see 2-page summary of this paper here) 

17. Ricart, A. M., Ward, M., Hill, T. M., Sanford, E., Kroeker, K., Takeshita, Y., Merolla, S., Shukla, S., Ninokawa, A., Elsmore, K., and Gaylord, B. Commentary: Overstated Potential for Seagrass Meadows to Mitigate Coastal Ocean Acidification. Frontiers in Marine Science (9), 884857, (2022). https://doi.org/10.3389/fmars.2022.884857 

18. Ward, M., Kindinger, T. Hirsh, H. , Koweek, D., Hill, T. Jellison, B., Lummis, S., Rivest, E., Waldbusser, G., B. Gaylord, and Kroeker, K. Spatial and temporal patterns in seagrass metabolic fluxes. Biogeosciences (19) 689-699, (2022). https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-19-689-2022. 

19. Ward, M., Hill, T. M., Souza, C., Filipczyk, T., Ricart, A. M., Merolla, S., Capece, L. R., O’Donnell, B. C., Elsmore, K., Oechel, W. C., and Beheshti, K. M. Blue Carbon Stocks and Exchanges Along the Pacific West Coast. Biogeosciences (18) 4717-4732, (2021). https://doi.org/10.5194/bg-18-4717-2021. 

20. Ricart, A. M., Ward, M., Hill, T. M., Sanford, E., Kroeker, K., Takeshita, Y., Merolla, S., Shukla, S., Ninokawa, A., Elsmore, K., and Gaylord, B. Coast-wide evidence of low pH amelioration by seagrass ecosystems. Global Change Biology (00) 1-12, (2021). https://doi.org/10.1111/gcb.15594 

21. Ricart, A. M., Gaylord, B., Hill, T.M, Sigwart, J. Shukla, P., Ward, M., Ninokawa, A. and Sanford, E. Seagrass driven changes in carbonate chemistry enhance oyster growth. Oecologia, (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00442-021-04949-0

21. Ward, M., Hill, T. M., Ricart, A., Gaylord, B., O'Donnell, B C., Capece, L., Shukla, P., Kroeker, K., Sanford, E., and W. Oechel. Synthesizing Multiple Carbon Fluxes in a Temperate, Pacific Seagrass Meadow. Global Biogeochemical Cycles (in review).  

23. P. A. Bowler, Beheshti, K., Brutto, A., Drake, C., Koshniat, T., Ward, M., and K. Wong. Diocey in Riparian Environments and the Implications for Restoration. Ecological Restoration 36(4): 272 - 275, (2018).  doi:10.3368/er.36.4.272
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Selected technical reports & white papers

1. Ward, M., Barrows, A., Bolick, L. . Coastal Blue Carbon: A Preliminary Guide for Navy Land Managers.

2. Ward, M. A., Merrill, J., and Katz, B.G. 2024. Science-based guidance for best management practices for co-management of submerged aquatic vegetation and molluscan shellfish in Oregon bays and estuaries. (pdf here)

3. Ward, M. 2024. Assessing existing data, models, and opportunities for California’s blue carbon ecosystems in the context of California Air Resources Board’s 2027 Climate Change Scoping Plan. (pdf here)

4. Queirós, A. M., Yang, M., Rühl, S., Rindt, C., Ward, M. and Crooks, S (2024). Seascape carbon management beyond wetlands, as eligible blue carbon activities. Scientific review. PML Publishing, United Kingdom. 69pp. doi: 10.17031/vhba-sf72

5. Ward, M. et al. Developing a UK Seagrass Carbon Code. (pdf here, 2 page summary here). University of Oxford, June 2023.

6. Ward, M., McHugh, T. A., Elsmore, K., Esgro, M., Ray, J., Murphy-Cannella, M., Norton, I. and Freiwald, J. Restoration of North Coast Bull Kelp Forests: A Partnership Based Approach. California Reef Check, May 2022. (pdf here).

7. Nichols, K and M. Ward. Newport Bay Caulerpa prolifera Suurveys. Prepared for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

8. Ward, M. and K. Beheshti. Eelgrass Restoration on the U.S. West Coast: A Comprehensive Assessment of Restoration Techniques and Their Outcomes. Prepared for: Pew Charitable Trusts by the Pacific Marine Environmental Partnership. 2021. (pdf found here)
(Accompanying data search tool here) 

9. A Carbon Neutral California: Blue Carbon Sequestration along California’s Coast. CCST Expert Briefing Series. 2020. (pdf found here) 

10. Ward, M. Blue Carbon: Seagrass as a Tool for Ocean Acidification and Climate Change Management in California. Prepared for: the California Ocean Protection Council, the California Ocean Science Trust. 2016. ​(pdf found here)  
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