Stand with Dr. Sonia Rowley to rebuild her science career

Please support faculty member Dr. Sonia J Rowley as she recovers from battling unprofessional workplace behavior during prior research activities that spanned nearly a decade. Dr. Rowley has persisted despite a scenario that could have featured in the documentary "Picture a Scientist", pursuing justice within a system that has continuously failed her. As a community, it's time for us to support her so that she can turn her brilliant mind to more worthy topics: discovery, protecting our natural environment, and training the next generation of marine scientists.

Dr. Rowley’s research focuses on gorgonian octocorals in the Indo-Pacific that are a flagship conservation species around the globe. These enigmatic corals are highly abundant and diverse at deep depths, yet very little is known about them despite their many benefits to society and the natural world, including as pharmaceuticals for the prevention of cancer and other serious illnesses.

Dr. Rowley is a world expert in closed circuit rebreather diving, and has discovered several species new to science at depths greater than 160 m/525 ft. She is the only woman in the world with this expertise. She was awarded the prestigious Sir David Attenborough Award for Fieldwork and many other accolades for her research. In 2022 she received a National Science Foundation Track-4 EPSCoR Research Fellowship to advance her research, as well as analyze and disseminate the many species new to science that she has found.

Dr. Rowley is a “soft money” scientist, meaning that she must raise 100% of her salary and research funds, a more common situation for women than men scientists. However, the persistent unprofessional treatment that she has experienced has actively prevented her from pursuing her work. Despite support from some key allies at her current place of employment, the professional repercussions from the past circumstances are significant. She now risks losing her laboratory, position, and future ability to find funding and a permanent science position. Dr. Rowley has had to resort to driving rideshares and collecting unemployment benefits to make ends meet, a catastrophic waste of her unique skills and expertise in marine science.

Financial support to cover her salary will enable Dr. Rowley to (1) complete important research on the phylogenetic accuracy of the coral tree of life, which will form the basis of compelling proposals to the National Science Foundation; (2) support biodiversity conservation initiatives; and (3) continue training underrepresented students, who are passionate about conserving marine biodiversity both nationally and internationally.

Please help Dr. Rowley bridge a critical funding gap in her science career, as she works to analyze and disseminate datasets that could change our understanding of the world’s oceans. We can’t afford to lose another outstanding scientist to the “leaky pipeline”, especially one who has fought so courageously for safe workplaces for women. Please donate if you are able, and share widely with your networks. Any amount would be appreciated; no amount is too small.