What is the link between greentail shrimp and green energy? Dr. Lela Schlenker is set to explain why both are critical to North Carolina’s future.
Schlenker will be the speaker for this month’s “Science on the Sound” lecture at the Coastal Studies Institute on the ECU Outer Banks Campus in Wanchese.
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The fisheries liaison for Kitty Hawk Wind, Schlenker’s presentation “What do greentails have to do with green energy? An update on the Kitty Hawk offshore wind project served with a side of shrimp” is set for 6 p.m. Thursday, March 20, at the campus. Offered at no charge, the program will also be livestreamed on the CSI YouTube channel.
Schlenker plans to discuss her research on shrimp populations in the Pamlico Sound that she completed while a postdoctoral researcher at the Coastal Studies Institute, as well as give a project update on Kitty Hawk Wind, an offshore wind project being planned by Avangrid Renewables more than 32 miles off of the Outer Banks.
Schlenker holds a master’s in fisheries science from the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and a doctorate in marine ecology from the University of Miami.
As the fisheries liaison for Kitty Hawk Wind since 2023, Schlenker leads outreach for the project to fishermen, state, regional, and federal fisheries managers, and the North Carolina research community. She has worked with stakeholders to develop a fisheries monitoring plan for the project and she works in developing policy and advising on fisheries issues across Avangrid’s global portfolio.
The monthly, in-person lecture series at the Coastal Studies Institute “brings perspectives from all over the state and highlights coastal topics in northeastern North Carolina,” organizers said.
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