Intentionally Building Inclusive Spaces for Queer Scientists
Co-hosted by the SMM and Absolutely Smashing Event and Consulting’s Mindful Conservation
on Thursday, 18 November 2021
12 PM–2 PM Eastern Daylight Savings Time
To highlight matters of diversity, inclusion and equity (DEI) within the SMM, the ad hoc Diversity and Inclusion Committee are organising a series of DEI-related webinars. The first, focused on Internship Equity can be found here. The second, on challenges and successes of conducting research in Southeast Asia can be found here.
About the Event
The advancement of ocean science and marine conservation success ultimately relies on the well-being of the scientists involved. This well-being largely depends on our scientific community providing a safe and supportive space for scientists and conservation practitioners to work in. There are large number of LGBTQ+ scientists within our community that often face prejudice, exclusion, and discrimination. Success of the whole community depends on diversity, equity, and inclusion. In this webinar we seek to promote understanding of the issues and struggles our LGBTQ+ scientists face, and work towards solutions to problems and barriers that they face.
The webinar opened with a presentation of the language of identity by Zeke Gonzalez that discussed definitions in the queer community and the challenges that queer people in STEM who are out face. The panel then shared stories and thoughts in a discussion on a variety of topics covering the dangers of field work and travel, problems of intersectionality and heteronormative privilege, and the emotional load and time commitment of queer people who are frequently tapped to represent the community in DEI activities. The webinar ended on notes stressing the the importance of support for the queer community from faculty, universities, and the wider STEM field in general.
Speakers and Panelists
| Zeke Gonzalez (he/him/his) Zeke Gonzalez is a queer graduate student in the Carleton lab at the University of Maryland studying cichlid color vision and reproductive behavior. Besides his passion for sexual selection, Zeke is also a swim coach and gives talks at local schools with arthropod specimens from the UMD Insect Zoo. He spends his free time hosting horror movie night with his friends and colleagues, trying out new games, and training for a triathlon. |
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| Dr. Daniel M. Palacios (he/him/his) Dr. Daniel Palacios is an Associate Professor with the Marine Mammal Institute at Oregon State University, where he leads the Whale Habitat, Ecology & Telemetry Lab. He hails originally from Colombia, and his research addresses questions dealing with the large-scale (“seascape”) ecology of top marine predators in relation to ocean processes, including interactions with the environment, with other species, and with human activities. |
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| Annabel Gong (they/them) Annabel Gong is a master’s student at the University of San Diego studying the movement of the shovelnose guitarfish and California bat ray along the Southern California coast. Annabel is also the co-host of the podcast LGBTQ+ STEM Cast, a podcast where they interview LGBTQ+ identifying STEM professionals from around the world. Annabel is a huge shark enthusiast and is currently applying to PhD positions to continue their work in shark and ray movement ecology. |
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| Panel Planners and Moderators
Dr. Heather Penney |
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| Dr. Ashley Scarlett, Founder of Absolutely Smashing Events and Consulting Ashley Scarlett is a scientist that specializes in marine mammal science and science communication. She is a consultant of social media, product or service promoting, video & podcast production (editing, hosting, etc), outreach, events planning, and her favorite mindful conservation advocacy. |
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Please direct any questions or comments about the webinar to Dr. Ashley Scarlett.
If you have suggestions for future webinars in this series, please direct them to the SMM ad hoc Diversity and Inclusion Committee.






Jo Marie Acebes “Jom”
Wint Hte
Turning strandings into a powerful resource for cetacean conservation in a resource limited environment.
Long is a trained ecologist and conservationist, who started studying marine mammals in 2012. Currently, his work focuses on narrowing information gaps in our knowledge of the marine mammals of Vietnam to better inform conservation and management. Long founded Vietnam’s only dedicated marine mammal NGO, Center for Biodiversity Conservation and Endangered Species (CBES). Long was the winner of the SMM EBS Award for conservation focused research in 2019.
Wei-Cheng Yang “Jack”
Moderators
In 1993, Lindsay moved to Hong Kong to conduct her PhD and has lived and worked in Asia ever since. Lindsay is one of the founding members of the Southeast Asia Marine Mammal association (SEAMMAM) and the Asian Marine Mammal Stranding Network (AMMSN) and collaborates with many institutes and NGO’s within Asia and is a strong advocate of regional collaboration that strives to improve the status of cetaceans and sirenians throughout Asia, As Awards Chair for the SMM, Lindsay has established a committee of globally diverse participants with representatives from eight (8) countries spanning the Americas, Asia, Europe and Oceania and claims to have one of the best roles in the SMM.
