By Julia Robins, Staff Writer
This summer, George Mason University (GMU) graduate students Raph Mazzone and Bea Vianna will help Virginia Sea Grant (VASG) improve awareness of coastal and ocean research at several Virginia universities.
As a six-university partnership, Virginia Sea Grant works to connect research to industry and communities that could use it. Mazzone and Vianna will conduct research at VASG’s partner institutions to help strengthen those connections.
“It’s kind of what a reference library does,” says Mazzone, who previously worked at the National Archives. He sees many parallels between his work at the archives and what Sea Grant can do to share its resources with the community. Mazzone says, “I found that to be intriguing.”
Mazzone, who has a BA in economics and history from Salisbury University and an MS in library and information science from University of Maryland, also worked for years for the Associated Press. Now, he’s pursuing a PhD at GMU in science communication.
As for Vianna, “I think it’s a great opportunity to gain hands-on experience and see how I can use science communication skills to help Sea Grant connect with the community,” she says about her internship at Sea Grant.
Vianna lived in Brazil for 26 years, earning a BS in biology before coming to the US for graduate study—starting with an MS in forensic sciences at West Virginia University (WVU). While she began a PhD program at WVU in science education, she took such an interest in a science communication course that she transferred to the science communication program at GMU. She hopes to graduate with her PhD next year.
Engaging communities with science is what Vianna is most passionate about. “We don’t talk about space any more and we have no idea what’s happening to our oceans,” she says. “I think it’s fascinating, so why can’t we talk about it and be excited?”
