Patricia M. Clay, Ph.D.

Anthropologist

Background

Trish received a B.A. in Anthropology and Modern Languages from the University of Notre Dame in 1981 and a Ph.D. in Anthropology from Indiana University in 1993. She joined the Northeast Fisheries Science Center in 1993. Trish currently serves on the Monkfish Fishery Management joint Plan Development Team for the New England and Mid-Atlantic Fishery Management Councils, is Chair of the Society for Applied Anthropology's Topical Interest Group on Fisheries and Coastal Communities, co-chairs the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) Working Group on Maritime Systems, and is a member of the ICES Working Group on the Northwest Atlantic Regional Sea. She was also a member of the Oceans and Coasts Team that, along with other topical teams, prepared publically available Technical Input Documents and several internal reports for the 3rd National Climate Assessment.

Research

Trish's primary research interests are social and cultural aspects of fisheries and fishing communities as they relate both to ecosystem-based management and social impact assessment, including the impacts of climate change on all of the above. Current and recent projects include using oral histories to investigate the rising average age of fishermen and the aging fishing fleet; co-drafting the Northeast Regional Action Plan to implement the NMFS National Climate Science Strategy at a regional level; work on sociocultural issues related to marine mammal interactions with fishing vessels; and investigating potential qualitative and quantitative indicators of well-being for fishermen and fishing communities.