HRI: Research Staff

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HRI RESEARCH STAFF

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RESEARCH STAFF
DR. JENNIFER BESERES POLLACK
DR. JORGE BRENNER
DR. IVONNE CRUZ
LARRY HYDE
RICK KALKE
DR. HAE CHOEL KIM
DR. FABIO MORETZSOHN
SURAIDA NANEZ-JAMES
TERRY PALMER
MEGAN REESE

Spanish university
grants award to
HRI's Ivonne Cruz

March 2008 - In her PhD dissertation, HRI's Postdoctoral Research Associate Dr. Ivonne Cruz proposed a new evaluation methodology inspired by a humanistic development theory better known as the Human-Scale Development approach.

For the innovative endeavor and holistic approach that Cruz pursued in addressing the issue of human development, the Universidad Complutense de Madrid in Spain awarded her first prize and $4,620 (3,000 euro) in the category of social and legal sciences as part of a contest on approaches to international aid and human development.

Cruz is currently working at HRI in marine governance and related policy issues. She also collaborates with other research centers and consulting groups in Mexico, the US and Europe.

The main objective of Cruz' dissertation was to use conceptual and methodological insights to evaluate human development policies in order to build more coherent and sustainable human development strategies within the political sphere. Her idea is to understand the “sustainable” feature as a systemic and holistic principle.

Her adapted methodology, which she describes as "multidimensional," has been used to evaluate other case studies in human development reports including one on women's empowerment in Nepal and another on racism in Brazil. Cruz' methodology might also be used to evaluate social policy processes in Chile, Vietnam and Samoa through a study on implementing climate change policies for small islands.

In addition to the Spanish university that granted Cruz the award, the Evaluation Office of the United Nations Development Program has demonstrated an interest in her multidimensional approach for evaluating global programs.

OVERVIEW: Research Staff are scientific and operational personnel who support the research programs of the Endowed Faculty and Faculty Research Associates in the HRI building. Most of them are research technical staff with Bachelors of Science and Masters of Science degrees in marine related fields. Research Staff personnel carry out the day-to-day field and lab research operations of the HRI.

DR. JENNIFER BESERES POLLACK
HRI POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Dr. Jennifer Beseres Pollack works with HRI endowed chair Dr. Paul Montagna. She received her PhD in Marine Science

from the University of South Carolina in 2006, where her research focused on the feeding dynamics and predatory impact of penaeid shrimp in estuarine creeks and mariculture ponds. Jenni’s primary research interests at HRI involve the relationship between changing environmental parameters, such as freshwater inflow, and the response of ecologically and economically important species, such as the eastern oyster. She is also interested in practical applications of benthic ecology, including restoration of salt marsh and oyster reef habitats, and the use of new technologies for shoreline erosion control.

DR. JORGE BRENNER
HRI POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Dr. Jorge Brenner is working with Dr. Paul Montagna, HRI's Endowed Chair of Ecosystem Studies and

Modeling, conducting research on eco-informatics and ecological economics sciences. He is interested in ecosystem services, health assessment, valuation models, spatial dynamics, marine conservation and sustainability sciences. Born in Veracruz, Mexico, Brenner lived in Spain before moving to Corpus. His areas of expertise are biodiversity conservation, eco-informatics, GIS, coastal zone management, ecological economics and sustainability science.

GULFBASE BIO

ARTICLE: GUARDING THE GULF'S VALUABLE RESOURCES

DR. IVONNE CRUZ
HRI POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Dr. Ivonne Cruz obtained her Ph.D. at the UNESCO Chair in Sustainability at the UPC in Barcelona, Spain. She has dedicated most of her latest work to the analysis and evaluation of Human Development Policies. Her research is focused on integrating the social, political, environmental, Dr. Ivonne Cruz

economic, cultural and institutional dimensions of development in policymaking. As an HRI Postdoctoral Research Associate, she guides projects related to the human dimensions of marine policy implications and natural resources governance issues. She collaborates part time with the UNESCO Chair in Sustainability as an associate researcher and works as an independent consultant for local and international organizations. Her recent work involves expanding on Sustainable Human Development programs that focus on analysis of well-being and quality-of life issues. She is also interested in sustainable governance issues in the Gulf of Mexico region. Human needs and human capabilities theories are also key aspects of her work.

LARRY HYDE
HRI RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Larry J. Hyde works for HRI endowed chair Dr. Paul Montagna. Hyde received a Master’s degree in Biology

from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi in 2000. His graduate studies focused on the distribution and ecology of benthic molluscs on Stetson Bank within the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Technical pursuits at HRI primarily include taxonomic description of marine benthic samples from Texas estuaries, as well as corresponding analysis of chlorophyll-a from the adjacent water column. Additional taxonomic work is being performed on samples from the West Coast of Africa and McMurdo Sound, Antarctica. He enjoys recreational diving, nature photography, and culinary exploration.

RICK KALKE
HRI RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Rick Kalke, a 1969 and 1972 Texas A&M graduate, has been working with HRI endowed chair Dr. Paul Montagna and other

benthic ecologist from the University of Texas Marine Science Institute for the past 35 years. He has been involved in Texas coastal freshwater inflow and Gulf of Mexico benthic studies since 1972. Rick is Dr. Montagna’s laboratory manager and field sampling coordinator with an expertise in benthic and zooplankton ecology and taxonomy. He received a University of Texas College of Natural Science Staff Recognition & Excellence Award in 1998-99. Outside interests are fishing, gardening, BBQ and Texas Honky-Tonk music.

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DR. HAE CHOEL KIM
HRI POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE
Dr. Hae-Cheol Kim works with HRI endowed chair Dr. Paul Montagna, developing a coupled ecosystem box model that

can predict ecosystem responses and bay health to changes in freshwater inflow. He received his PhD in Oceanography from the Center for Coastal Physical Oceanography, Old Dominion University in 2004, where his research focused on marine primary production and carbon flux in Antarctic coastal waters. Before coming to HRI, he was working at the Smithsonian Environmental Research Center as a postdoctoral fellow, where he developed a coupled watershed-ecosystem model for prediction of eutrophication and water quality in tributaries of the Chesapeake Bay.

DR. FABIO MORETZSOHN
HRI POSTDOCTORAL RESEARCH ASSOCIATE

Dr. Fabio Moretzsohn is working with Dr. Wes Tunnell on the biota of the Gulf of Mexico (GOM), coordinating the checklist of marine molluscs of the Gulf of Mexico. He is interested in systematics, biodiversity and conservation of marine invertebrates, especially molluscs. His research has taken him to collecting field trips in Brazil, Japan, Hawaii and other Pacific Islands. He enjoys diving and digital imaging both as hobbies and as research tools.

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SURAIDA NANEZ-JAMES
HRI RESEARCH SPECIALIST
Suraida Nañez-James is currently working with Dr. Wes Tunnell on invasive species and science education and outreach for the HRI. She received her B.S. in Marine Fisheries from Texas A&M University at Galveston while working for the NOAA Fisheries Laboratory in Galveston. In 2006, she received her Masters in Biology from Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi where she focused her studies on identifying and characterizing nursery habitats for juvenile southern flounder in Texas bays. Her areas of interest include fisheries biology and ecology, ecosystem studies, invasive species and science education.

TERRY A. PALMER
HRI RESEARCH SPECIALIST

Terry Palmer is working with HRI endowed chair Dr. Paul Montagna, investigating freshwater inflow and circulatory changes to Corpus Christi Bay. He is interested in water quality, the effects that humans have on the coastal and estuarine environment, and the use of benthic macrofauna as indicators to detect changes in the environment. He has studied pollution in Antarctica as part of a long-term research project, has researched New Zealand freshwater systems and has done extensive research in Texas estuaries.

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MEGAN REESE
HRI RESEARCH SPECIALIST
Megan Reese is working with HRI’s Endowed Research

Professor Dr. Greg Stunz conducting fisheries ecology research. Specifically she is investigating linkages among the marine environment, fisheries productivity and ocean health. She is interested in marine ecology, the relative value of habitat to estuarine fishes and crustaceans, as well as human impacts to estuarine ecosystems. She has studied aquatic systems from the freshwater lakes in Minnesota to estuaries along the Texas coast.

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