Maxwell Bearse

• Amanda Kelley
• Sarah Mincks

Max is an MS student investigating the effects of ocean acidification and glacial ablation on coastal Alaskan ecosystems. He received his BA in Biochemistry and Chinese Language from Bowdoin College in 2015. Max grew up right on the water in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, which led to his love of sailing and his interest in studying how environmental change will impact fragile coastal ecosystems and the communities that rely on them for their way of life.

I would like to build a career actively researching how to predict and mitigate the effects of anthropogenic climate change on coastal ecosystems. I plan on eventually returning home to Cape Cod to try and protect the area where I grew up, given its particular vulnerability to rising sea levels and changes in ocean chemistry.

• Marine biology
• Biochemistry
• Ocean acidification

Max is investigating the effects of anthropogenically induced ocean acidification and glacial ablation on intertidal, whole sediment communities in Kachemak Bay. Specifically, he will characterize infaunal sediment community structure and function across a glacial gradient and explore how OA alters benthic food webs and rates of organic-matter processing. His research is partially funded by the Fire and Ice project through Alaska NSF EPSCoR.

• Community tennis programming
• Election poll volunteer

• Solar and Wind Renewables Developer with Advance Energy

• Kelly lab at UAF