You’re Invited: Minnesota Sea Grant Fellowship Showcase, June 3

Twin Ports Freshwater Folk invites you to a special event on June 3, 2026, from 11:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., showcasing the work of the 2025-2026 cohort of the Minnesota Sea Grant Science and Policy Fellowship.

During this month’s event, three Minnesota Sea Grant Science and Policy Fellows will share their experiences and work on Minnesota’s water resources. Fellows Larissa Scott, Reid Brown, and Reane Loiselle-Kasun will share their work, which focused on stream restoration tools for St. Louis County, data-driven evaluations of water sustainability and permitting, and new insights into the management of aquatic invasive species. Full abstracts and fellow bios are available on the event webpage.

The event is free and open to the public.

In-person attendance

• In-person attendees are welcome to gather in the Duluth MPCA conference room at 11:30 a.m. for networking, sandwiches, and plenty of fresh water. The presentation will begin at noon.
• Address: 525 Lake Ave. S., Suite 400, Duluth, MN 55802
• In-person registration
   

Virtual attendance

• TPFF members can attend this session virtually via Zoom. The presentation will begin at noon. Sadly, the Zoom option is sandwich-free.
• Virtual registration
   

Event schedule

• 11:30 a.m. Meet-and-greet and lunch
• 12:00 p.m. Community announcements
• 12:05 p.m. Fellowship showcase
• 12:50 p.m. Moderated Q&A session
• 1:00 p.m. Adjourn
   

Presentations

1. Connecting Curly-leaf Pondweed Management and Water Quality Outcomes: Reane Loiselle-Kasun
   Host agency: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources 
   Mentors: Kelly Pennington & Jon Hanson
   
   Working with the MNDNR, Loiselle-Kasun evaluated the management of curly-leaf pondweed, the state's most frequently treated aquatic invasive plant. While herbicide and mechanical treatments are widely deployed to improve water quality, the water-quality outcomes of these efforts are relatively unknown. To address this uncertainty, Loiselle-Kasun leveraged a large remote-sensing dataset spanning over 350 lakes to explicitly analyze the water quality impacts of Curly-leaf pondweed management.
    
2. Assessing Minnesota Water Permits' Ability to Constrain High-volume Water Use: Reid Brown
   Host agency: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources 
   Mentor: Pooja Kanwar
   
   With the Minnesota DNR, Brown evaluated long-term water-appropriation trends and managed the environmental review for a major stream-restoration project. Their water consumption analysis revealed that actual usage is typically lower than permitted volumes except for agricultural irrigation during droughts, suggesting an opportunity to refine state water allocation policies. Additionally, Brown supported the environmental review process for stream restoration at the Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve, helping shepherd the project through the regulatory process.
    

3. Advancing Stream Restoration in Saint Louis County: Larissa Scott
   Host: St. Louis County, Minnesota
   Mentors: Carol Andrews and Will Bomier

   Scott developed St. Louis County's first high-resolution stream network and a restoration prioritization application, establishing a foundational tool for future flood prediction and climate resiliency. Scott also conducted innovative thermal monitoring along Miller and Tischer creeks, utilizing the data to coordinate targeted riparian planting initiatives with the Nature Conservancy to mitigate extreme heat stress. Finally, Scott supported county stormwater and de-icing policies, monitored monarch butterfly habitats, and enhanced St. Louis County’s long-term capacity for collaborative, data-driven watershed stewardship.

Funding acknowledgement
Funding for the Minnesota Sea Grant Science and Policy Fellowship is provided by the Minnesota Environment and Natural Resources Trust Fund as recommended by the Legislative-Citizen Commission on Minnesota Resources (LCCMR). The Trust Fund is a permanent fund constitutionally established by the citizens of Minnesota to assist in the protection, conservation, preservation, and enhancement of the state’s air, water, land, fish, wildlife, and other natural resources. Additional support for the 2025-26 cohort was provided by St. Louis County.

Event sponsors

• Minnesota Sea Grant
• Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
• UMN Duluth Large Lakes Observatory
• UMN Duluth Natural Resources Research Institute
• US EPA Great Lakes Toxicology and Ecology Division

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Contact
Alex Frie, research and fellowship coordinator, Minnesota Sea Grant, University of Minnesota and University of Minnesota Duluth. [email protected].