Alaska Pacific University Microplastics Research and Education Center

Our students conduct microplastics research across vast landscapes and ecosystems: 1 Lauren Oschak on a beach in Kasitsna Bay collecting intertidal samples, 2 Ryan Beaufort collecting snow and ice core samples from Eklutna Glacier with friend, 3 Roger Jaramillo & Matthew Crisafi-Lurtsema (UAF students working in APU’s AAWA lab) on the summit of Denali collecting snow samples, 4 Na’vid Khizri suiting up to dive for ocean samples in Smitty’s Cove, Whittier AK, 5 Na’vid diving in Smitty’s Cove

Lauren Oschak, M.A.T., Microplastics Research & Education Center Administrator, AAWA lab manager. Lauren is also conducting research on microplastics contamination in intertidal zones as a graduate student.

Nathan Anderson, M.S., is a Co-PI in the Microplastics Research and Education Center Project. He is an assistant professor in the Marine & Environmental Science program at Alaska Pacific University. His research background includes geomorphology, geochemistry, and glacial geology in Alaska and abroad. Nathan holds a M.S. degree in earth science from Dartmouth College and a bachelor’s degree in environmental science with a minor in mathematics for environmental science from Alaska Pacific University. He currently teaches courses in mathematics, physics, and the natural sciences, including a natural history field course with a 10-day expedition on the upper-Yukon River between the communities of Eagle and Circle, Alaska.