Andrew Gerhart

Born in Austin, Texas, Andy and his family fled the state as environmental refugees from the red imported fire ant, Solenopsis invicta, to which his mother had a lethal allergy. After relocating to Colorado, he attended the Colorado College as a Boettcher scholar and received a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Science (magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa) as well as CC’s Outstanding Senior Award in the Environmental Sciences.  Andy’s interest in environmental issues derives largely from a year spent teaching at the Uthongathi School and working at the Albert Luthuli Community Development and Education Trust in Kwa-Zulu Natal, South Africa. 

Just before coming to Stanford, Andy was hitchhiking on cargo ships through the Tuamotu atolls.  Prior to that he researched aquaculture policy for Becky Goldburg at Environmental Defense, instructed in and administered a marine science education program at the Catalina Island Marine Institute, worked for the National Marine Fisheries Service as an observer in the Alaskan pollock and California drift-gillnet swordfish fisheries, and traveled some of the world’s coastlines (at one point tracing Shackleton’s wake to South Georgia). 

With IPER’s flexibility at Stanford, Andy is formulating a research plan that will weave marine policy, environmental history, and education in order to enhance human understandings of the oceans.  Using marine aquaculture as a lens through which to focus on the human relationship with the marine world, he will study its history in combination with contemporary aquaculture policy with the goal of informing responsible marine resource stewardship.  He further hopes to research alternative education platforms that can be used to broadly disseminate knowledge about human interdependence on the marine environment.  When not pursuing this, he can be found on or under water in its various forms (often with his head in the clouds).