Kelsey Prihoda

Kelsey Prihoda headshot
Professional Title
Sea Grant Great Lakes Transportation Extension Educator

What I do for Sea Grant

I help to serve the Minnesota Sea Grant Program and the Great Lakes Sea Grant Network with regard to the transport of hazardous materials across the Great Lakes region. My two major focus areas are maritime transport and Great Lakes hazardous materials transport. 

For maritime transport, I will be focused on:

  • Supply-chain security
  • Short-sea shipping
  • Intermodal transportation
  • Economic and environmental impacts
  • Waterway infrastructure maintenance
  • Ballast water management
  • Trade and regulatory policies

For hazardous materials transport, I will be focused on:

  • Hazardous materials transport issues
  • Coordinate Great Lakes Sea Grant efforts surrounding hazardous materials transport issues
  • Coordinate the "risk optimization" extension program
  • Provide information on trade and regulatory policies

Education

M.S. - Toxicology
Iowa State University
B.S. - Biology
University of Wisconsin-Superior

Outreach Projects

White research ship on calm lake

Center for Great Lakes Literacy

The Center for Great Lakes Literacy (CGLL) helps create a Great Lakes-literate public capable of effectively contributing to the environmental, economic and social sustainability of the Great Lakes.

graphic of the top of a yellow kayak with words Paddle Safe

Paddle Safe Twin Ports

The PaddleSafeTwinPorts.org website is to help recreational paddlers select launch sites and avoid dangerous encounters with commercial ship traffic in the Duluth-Superior area of Lake Superior.

Duluth lighthouse, UMD Blue Heron and two other ships

Great Lakes Shipping 101

A curated selection of resources about the Great Lakes maritime transportation system and the Port of Duluth-Superior.

The vessel Walter J. McCarthy Jr passes through the Duluth entry from Lake Superior into the Port of Duluth-Superior. The entry is lined by people watching the vessel.

Hazardous Material Transport Outreach Network (HazMaTON)

Maritime hazmat transportation in the Great Lakes.

Illustration of person with backpack and walking stick hiking next to a stream with sun and birds and trees and cattails.

Habitat Management in the St. Louis River Estuary Workshop

On April 14, 2022, the University of Minnesota Sea Grant College Program hosted a one-day, virtual workshop with the goal of generating ideas and partnerships leading to targeted and impactful research funding for the St. Louis River Estuary and providing a mechanism for estuary-wide decision making.

Locations of drowning and incidents in the St. Louis River Estuary and water access points (boating, beaches, campgrounds).

Drowning Hotspots in the St. Louis River Estuary

The goal of this project is to help prevent future drownings in the St. Louis River Estuary by characterizing, forecasting, and increasing public awareness of drowning hotspots, which are locations where drowning has occurred or that pose high drowning risks.

Upcoming Events

Locations of drowning and incidents in the St. Louis River Estuary and water access points (boating, beaches, campgrounds).

Final Project Workshop for "Identifying Drowning Hotspots in the St. Louis River Estuary"

bridge graphic with IAGLR conference Logo

IAGLR's 67th Annual Conference on Great Lakes Research

Featured Stories

Duluth aerial lift bridge, a ship, sail boats, summer day.

HazMaTON: Transforming Hazardous Materials Transportation

Extension Column

The November extension column is by Great Lakes Sea Grant Transportation Extension Educator Kelsey Prihoda. Embodying Sea Grant’s long-standing nationwide role to bring science together with communities for solutions that work, Minnesota Sea Grant is working to provide outreach, community engagement, and research on hazardous material transport in the Great Lakes.

Media Mentions