From left to right, Heather Triezenberg, Michigan Sea Grant, and Dave Hart, Wisconsin Sea Grant, congratulate IISG's Amy Shambach for her 2023 Great Lakes Sea Grant Network Early Career Award.

At the recent Great Lakes Sea Grant Network meeting in Evanston, Illinois, Amy Shambach, Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant aquaculture marketing outreach associate, was presented with the 2023 Great Lakes Sea Grant Network Early Career Award.

Shambach has been in her role with IISG since 2019. Since then, she has developed numerous outreach products, including videos, factsheets, and websites. She has organized and led webinars and workshops in the two states and helped lead Great Lakes-wide projects.

Throughout her four years with the program, Shambach has worked closely with fish farmers—she has been someone they can turn to for guidance and information. As a result, she was able to help some farmers successfully secure federal support during COVID and then when an ice storm hit southern Illinois.

“It is unusual for someone to launch so many high-output, high-impact programs so early in their Sea Grant career, especially when they begin the job with little outreach experience,” said Stuart Carlton, IISG assistant director. “However, Amy is not usual, she is special, and is well deserving of recognition for her work.”

Ashley Belle, third from left, and the Spirit Lake Project Team, were presented with a 2023 Western Dredging Association Environmental Excellence Award for Partnerships and Outreach/Education.

Also honored at a recent event, IISG’s Ashley Belle is part of an award-winning team working to inform residents and other stakeholders in a Great Lakes Area of Concern that is undergoing an environmental cleanup. Belle leads outreach efforts for the Spirit Lake Project Team that was recently presented a 2023 Western Dredging Association Environmental Excellence Award for Partnerships and Outreach/Education.

Spirit Lake is located in the St. Louis River between Minnesota and Wisconsin and is part of one of the largest Great Lakes Legacy Act sediment remediation projects. This work takes place near the Duluth, Minnesota neighborhood of Morgan Park and a culturally significant tribal site—Spirit Island.

As the cleanup progresses, Belle and the team have provided public meetings, regular updates delivered to residents, online photo galleries, an onsite kiosk, and more.

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Stay updated with the latest environmental education happenings in the Great Lakes region. The Center for Great Lakes Literacy’s latest newsletter features upcoming events, professional learning opportunities, and valuable educational resources. Don’t miss out on these exciting updates—click the link in bio to read more and get involved!
Out with the old. A newly updated UnwantedMeds.org is here to make safe disposal of old medications easier than ever. Read more at the link in bio.
We are excited to offer the opportunity to propose a speaker or panel session during the 2026 Emerging Contaminants in the Environment Conference April 28-29.  The conference will feature traditional 15-minute presentations and a poster session on the latest in emerging contaminant research, policies, and outreach in the soil, water, and air.The deadline to propose a session is June 16, 2025.Learn more at the link in bio.
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