About the players
THE DUNGEON MASTER : Joshua Drew (@d20prof)
Dr Josh Drew a conservation ecologist working at the intersection of human and natural systems. He's currently a research assistant in the Department of Ichthyology at the American Museum of Natural History. You can learn about the current research in his lab,
the classes he's taught, his current students, and occasional musings. For more details visit his website.
the classes he's taught, his current students, and occasional musings. For more details visit his website.
Chris Parsons (@Craken_MacCraic)
Dr. Chris Parsons has been involved in whale and dolphin research for over two decades and has been involved in research projects in every continent except Antarctica. Dr. Parsons was an Associate Professor at George Mason University as well as the Director of their environmental science undergraduate program. He’s a member of the scientific committee of the International Whaling Commission (IWC), has been involved in organizing four International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC) meetings (the world’s largest academic marine conservation conference), two International Congress for Conservation (ICCB) Biology meetings and was a Governor of the Society for Conservation Biology (SCB) for three terms. In addition, Dr. Parsons has published over 170 scientific papers and book chapters and has written a textbook on marine mammal biology & conservation. For more details visit his website.
He's also a co-producer and host of The Marine Conservation Happy Hour podcast and the producer and host of the Environmental Studies & Sciences podcast and the Marine Mammal Science podcast.
He's also a co-producer and host of The Marine Conservation Happy Hour podcast and the producer and host of the Environmental Studies & Sciences podcast and the Marine Mammal Science podcast.
Travis Nielsen (@AzurigenMCS)
Travis Nielsen is the founder and CEO of Azurigen Management and Consulting Solutions Inc. A project management firm that specializes in working with academic and STEM groups. Travis is a published scientist specializing in crustacean ecology and behavior with 10 years experience in STEM, and 10 years of experience in management and leadership. He has been responsible for working with projects such at the 4th and 5th International Marine Conservation Congress, and Coastal Zone Canada 2018 Meeting.
N. Frances Farabaugh (@nffarabaugh)
Frances Farabaugh is a native of San Diego where she grew up exploring the beaches, tide pools and kelp beds of southern California. She graduated with a B.S. in 2014 from Humboldt State University with a double major in Marine Biology & Zoology and a minor in Scientific Diving. Her passion for biology and science outreach has taken her all over the world and including work as an instructor at Sea Camp San Diego, a scientific blogger for the Smithsonian’s NMNH in Washington, D.C., and research internships with STRI in Panama and OTS in Costa Rica. She is currently a Ph.D. student in the Heithaus Lab at Florida International University, and is heavily involved in the Global FinPrint Project. Her research focuses on behavioral ecology of marine predators. In particular, she hopes to elucidate the role sharks play in structuring reef communities, through investigating questions surrounding topics such as predation risk effects and the functional redundancy of top predators. In addition to her love of science and travel, Frances is an avid scuba diver, as well as an Aquanaut having completed missions at the world's only undersea research laboratory, Aquarius .
Andrew Kornblatt (@akornblatt)
With over 10 years experience in outreach, community development, project development and branding, I have managed projects in strategic marketing and communications have included work for clients such as California Governments, San Francisco public utilities and services, Non-Profit Organizations like the International Union for Conservation of Nature, Government agencies like National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and even companies like Google. By engaging the latest technologies for outreach and community building, I have developed successful projects all over the world dedicated to conservation and habitat monitoring. My specialty in outreach campaigns is multi-platform focused - everything from social media to in-person events. This includes desktop publishing, collateral creation, content development, and overarching creative strategy conception. My passion for ocean science and technology has culminated in the development of the Online Ocean Symposium and the podcast - Ocean Science Radio.
For more information visit my website http://www.andrewkornblatt.com/
For more information visit my website http://www.andrewkornblatt.com/
Matt Tietbohl (@WhyOceansMATTer)
Matt Tietbohl is a PhD student studying coral reef ecology in the Reef Ecology Lab at KAUST, a graduate university in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. He originally hails from Reading, PA in the States where he grew up chasing butterflies, exploring under rocks and logs, and memorizing dinosaur names. Matt discovered his love for the ocean during a high school field trip to Jamaica and a study abroad program in the Turks & Caicos Islands during his time at Wake Forest University. A fantastic study about fish movement brought him to the shores of the Red Sea where he completed his masters studying the functional diversity of coral reef fishes (“Do they all do the same stuff? Short answer probably not!”). Now, he is studying how herbivorous fishes help keep reefs healthy in the Red Sea. He maintains a strong interest in the chaos of coral reef ecology and has a special love for all things lurking below the surface. In his spare time, Matt is a huge bookworm who loves to eat, travel, and spend more time underwater. Heavily supportive of good science communication, Matt also volunteers with the Society for Conservation Biology Marine Section where he is a part of the Communications Committee and been involved in helping with various aspects of the sections biannual meeting, the International Marine Conservation Congress (where he was introduced to DnD!).
Erin Ziegler Anderson (@ErintheZ)
Erin is a life long artist with a special interest in science and marine life. After finishing her bachelors degree in marine biology with a minor in art, Erin continued to earn her Graduate Certificate in Science Communication to pursue a career in writing and outreach. She has been informally illustrating the adventures of the Cephalosquad as well as running her own webcomic.
Erin started producing fanart for Dugongs & Seadragons episodes and the crew loved her art so much they asked her to be a guest player during their special episode at Awesome Con in Washington DC, in 2019. The character of Darhana was so much fun and so thematically appropriate for the show they asked her to become a permanent member of the Cephalosquad from episode 46 onwards.
Erin started producing fanart for Dugongs & Seadragons episodes and the crew loved her art so much they asked her to be a guest player during their special episode at Awesome Con in Washington DC, in 2019. The character of Darhana was so much fun and so thematically appropriate for the show they asked her to become a permanent member of the Cephalosquad from episode 46 onwards.