MARCO Management Board Member Spotlight – Catherine McCall, Maryland Representative

As part of an effort to help MARCO stakeholders and partners get to know members of the MARCO Management Board, the quarterly newsletter has added a new feature – “Spotlight on a Management Board Member.” This month’s spotlight is on the representative from Maryland, Catherine McCall. Learn more about Catherine in her own words from the interview for the Spotlight.

• What is your name: Catherine McCall

• What is your work title: Director, Office of Coastal and Ocean Management

• What organization do you work for: Maryland Department of Natural Resources’ Chesapeake and Coastal Service

• How many years have you served on the MARCO Management Board: I’ve been involved in MARCO since the early days of 2009 when regional ocean collaboration was just an idea and the five states worked collaboratively on goals and establish MARCO. I’ve been a Management Board member since 2017. 

• What is your role on the Management Board: Maryland Management Board Member 

• What workgroups do you participate in? A lot of my work on oceans in Maryland is focused on offshore renewable energy and climate change, so I have recently been engaging more in the offshore wind work group. Previously, I was involved in sand and sediment work groups to discuss how sediment and resilience goals could be paired. 

• Contact Information: McCall@maryland.gov 

• What are your daily job duties? Like many state coastal zone managers, my daily job duties run the gamut from advancing work developing state climate resilience strategies, to environmental studies for offshore energy, to grants and budget management, and a bit of everything in between.

• What are the most fun and the most challenging parts of your job? The most fun and challenging aspects of my job are the bridges that I get to build between issue areas and partners. I really enjoy finding project synergies, connecting people and resources to advance priorities, and understanding the technical aspects of various projects that will aid in the success of that work or that could create project barriers.

• Why did you get involved in ocean resource management?  When Maryland first started getting involved in offshore   wind and regional partnerships, I was in our coastal   program. In that role, I began work advancing our state’s   work to engage our partners and constituents on ocean issues.

• What is the most pressing ocean resource issue in your state? The most pressing ocean resource issues at the moment could be framed around a single challenge, coordination across competing priorities. Whether ocean partners are talking about sand and sediment management and its use for resilience projects; or balancing offshore energy, ocean uses, and climate goals – the need for coordination across ocean uses, goals, and natural resource needs is at the top of many discussions.

• What is your hope for the future of ocean resource management? My personal hope for the future of ocean resource management is that there is open dialogue amongst ocean partners to seek common ground and develop collaborative solutions for both people and natural resources.

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