Dr. G

Hey neighbors – learn why NOAA is critical to all of us

This quilt is one of a series of quilts I generated following Election Day 2024. There were so many changes to laws, funding, access – especially related to my discipline and my research – that I used my sewing machine for Processing the Policies. Explore the collection.

hanging square quilt with ocean print material
NOAA mini quilt, made from a NOAA Teacher at Sea Alumni bandana. Quilt measures 24 inches by 24 inches and was completed June 4, 2025.

The U.S. federal agency NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) makes a frequent appearance on this blog. For example, I have posted about my time at sea with NOAA in the Gulf of Alaska on a fisheries survey. And I’ve even shared my quilt about NOAA’s key focus areas. But in addition to thanking NOAA for the incredible impact it has had on my career, I want to help others Know about NOAA and how it impacts each and every one of our lives on a daily basis.

Front door science educating and advocating for NOAA

Separately, since the pandemic, I have been using the front door of my house to share science with science-themed quilts to help all that walk by learn about topics ranging from climate change solutions to endangered species. Although I was happy to hang on the door facts about science, all of the proposed budget cuts being discussed this year to science research and the organizations critical to carrying out much-needed science leaves me feeling gutted – especially the discussions around NOAA. NOAA has played such a critical part of my career as well as my husband’s, and I wanted others to know that you don’t have to be a scientist or researcher to interact with NOAA and its services on a daily basis. This led to the quilt pictured at the top of this blog post, created from a NOAA Teacher at Sea alumni bandana, and the signage shown below.

I know – it is a lot of words I put on the front door. But I know my neighbors stop to read the door. And, importantly, some neighbors will even follow up with me and have an extended conversation on the topic. Our neighbors know we are oceanographers and that we teach science at local universities, but I’m hoping a bit more information about our personal connections to NOAA, and NOAA’s connections to everyone in the neighborhood and beyond, will cause people to take pause when they hear these discussions and proposed cuts to science.

If readers of this blog post would like to learn more and speak up for NOAA (or even speak to others about NOAA), I recommend checking out and sharing the following articles:

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