Jasha Dehm is a student at the Discipline of Marine Studies at University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji, where he is a PhD student working to assess distribution patterns of coral assemblages within the Suva Urban Marine Environment in relation to drivers for change. Jasha is attached to IRD in Noumea via an ARTs fellowship. With the IRD he is setting up a coastal hydrodynamic configuration specific to the Suva Urban Marine Environment using the CROCO model. Jasha joins the PACPATH project as a student ambassador where he will contribute with his understanding of the coastal dynamics in Fiji and will facilitate where possible the involvement of student research into PACPATH.
Maxime is ambassador student within the PACPATH project and PhD student at IRD in Noumea within the ENTROPIE laboratory on evaluation of the protective role of coastal ecosystems (reefs, seagrass beds and mangroves) in the reduction of the marine submersion hazard in New Caledonia. The focus is on both seasonal phenomena (e.g. swell) and extreme events (e.g. cyclones and tsunamis). This ecosystem service of protection will be approached according to an interdisciplinary approach between Human and Social Sciences (e.g. field surveys) and Earth Sciences (e.g. hydrodynamic modeling). The goal is to quantify and qualify the filtering effect of ecosystems on several sites in New Caledonia by looking at different hydrodynamic variables: water levels, waves and currents.
Salanieta is PhD student at the University of the South Pacific in Fiji (final year) on the traditional knowledge of fishers in Fiji and how it can be used to inform the local management and conservation efforts in Fiji. She joins the PACPATH Project as a USP student ambassador and will contribute in discussions on fisheries resources, small scale fisheries and how to properly engage Indigenous people and their knowledges in Ocean stewardship, governance and sustainable resource use. She is committed on sharing her views on the value of ethno-science for science.
