Marine Mammal Institute

BIOGRAPHY:

Dr. Lisa T. Ballance is the Director of Oregon State University’s Marine Mammal Institute, Endowed Chair of Marine Mammal Research, and Professor of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Sciences. In this role she oversees the vision and implementation of research, education, and outreach for the Institute’s 60 professors, post-doctorates, students, and staff.

Prior to joining OSU’s Marine Mammal Institute, Dr. Ballance directed NOAA’s Marine Mammal and Turtle Research Division in La Jolla, California, providing scientific leadership and oversight for 70 scientists conducting applied research in the context of Endangered Species and Marine Mammal Protection Act directives. She was also Chief Scientist of NOAA’s Eastern Tropical Pacific Dolphin Research Program, which provided the scientific basis for the “Dolphin Safe” label found on tuna cans in supermarkets all over this country.

Dr. Ballance holds a PhD in marine ecology, an MS in marine science, and a BS in biology. She has studied the ecology and conservation biology of whales, dolphins, porpoises, and seabirds for almost 40 years around the world, including the tropical Pacific and Indian Oceans, Antarctica, the Bering Sea, and Cambodia’s Mekong River. She has published more than 150 scientific papers, book chapters, and technical reports; regularly gives invited presentations at professional conferences, universities, public lectures, and policy-related briefings; and has been awarded research funding from a wide variety of sources including National Science Foundation, Department of Energy, US Navy, and Bureau of Ocean Energy Management.

Dr. Ballance is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, President-Elect of the Society for Marine Mammalogy, recipient of the Department of Commerce Bronze and Silver Medals, NOAA Fisheries’ Supervisor of the Year, cover feature of the Association for Women in Science, and Presidential nominee as Chair and Commissioner of the US Marine Mammal Commission.