Dr. Sarah Cooley is our next Ocean Acidification Program (OAP) Director. She comes to us as the former Senior Director of Climate Science at Ocean Conservancy. Dr. Cooley brings an exceptional arsenal of scientific expertise, communication prowess, interdisciplinary collaboration and leadership, only matched by her passion for ocean science.
Dr. Cooley is a leader in ocean change with both scientific and decision-making communities to forward efforts tackling ocean acidification and other environmental challenges. Her work mobilizing the scientific community through the Ocean Carbon & Biogeochemistry Program (OCB) helped establish the U.S. as a world leader in ocean acidification. Dr. Cooley’s Congressional engagement advanced the Coordinated Ocean Observations and Research Act, which affirmed the nation’s commitment to addressing ocean acidification. She will also bring federal leadership as the chair of the Interagency Working Group on Ocean Acidification (IWG-OA). As OAP’s Director, Dr. Cooley will continue to expand our understanding and capacity for addressing ocean acidification and the needs of impacted ecosystems, communities, and economies.
Importantly, Dr. Cooley is well poised to advance the needs of impacted communities and NOAA’s commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility. Her past ocean acidification research integrated socioeconomic impacts and worked to ensure her research was both comprehensive, inclusive, and responsive. She has a long track record of centering the voices and needs of people most likely to be affected by ocean climate change. She states “I am committed to ensuring that decision makers at all levels have access to the latest information about climate and ocean change.”
Dr. Cooley took her post as OAP Director on August 26, 2024.
Hear more from Sarah Cooley and what she hopes NOAA and OAP will accomplish for the future.
