Waldo Wakefield

Waldo Wakefield is affiliated with OSU’s Cooperative Institute for Marine Ecosystem and Resources Studies. He is a Courtesy Professor in the College of Earth, Ocean and Atmospheric Sciences’ Marine Resource Management Program.  He received an MS in Oceanography from OSU in 1984 and a Ph.D. in Oceanography from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1990. Between 1991 and 1999, Dr. Wakefield was on the faculty of the University of Alaska Fairbanks and, later, Rutgers University, where he served as Science Director for NOAA’s West Coast and Polar Regions and Mid-Atlantic Bight National Undersea Research Centers, respectively. From 1999 to 2018, Dr. Wakefield was a Research Fisheries Biologist and Marine Habitat Ecology Team Lead in the Groundfish Division at NOAA’s Fisheries Northwest Fisheries Science Center based on OSU’s Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) campus.

His extensive background in fish ecology, biological oceanography, and fisheries science started in 1974 when he began working at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia. His research applies advanced underwater technologies to study and assess marine habitats. Another major focus is on conservation engineering, working with researchers and industry to develop fishing gears that are more selective and reduce habitat impacts. Dr. Wakefield has participated in numerous research cruises, working with various oceanographic and fisheries technologies, sonar systems for seafloor mapping, and direct observation in situ platforms. He has served on Pacific Fisheries Management Council committees and technical working groups for over two decades.