Nikki Bransome is the Ross Sea Site Lead and Science and Knowledge Advisor for the Blue Nature Alliance, where she leads the Alliance’s work to strengthen the effectiveness and long-term durability of the Ross Sea region Marine Protected Area (MPA) through coordinated science, monitoring, sustainable financing, and international collaboration. Her work focuses on building the partnerships, resources, and scientific capacity needed to support effective long-term management of the Ross Sea MPA and advance science-based approaches to large-scale ocean conservation.
Before taking on her current role with the Alliance, Nikki worked on Southern Ocean conservation at The Pew Charitable Trusts. Beginning in 2014, she was part of the team that helped secure the designation of the world’s largest protected area in Antarctica’s Ross Sea, extend an interim ecosystem-based management measure for the Antarctic krill fishery, and achieve 100% observer coverage on krill fishing vessels. Earlier in her career, she worked at the U.S. Department of the Interior, where she advanced ecosystem-based management policies through the U.S. National Ocean Policy and U.S. Coral Reef Task Force.
Nikki has published research on using marine food web interactions to inform ecosystem-based fisheries management. She holds a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of California, San Diego and completed master’s studies in marine science at the University of Maryland. In her free time, she enjoys scuba diving and exploring the ocean and outdoors.