Onja Davidson Raoelison is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Stanford King Center on Global Development. She earned her PhD in Environmental Engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles, and holds a joint MSc in Environmental Engineering from UCLA and Civil Engineering from ESTP Paris. Her research focuses on the connection between wildfires, the environment, and human health, with the goal of building wildfire-resilient communities. Previously, her PhD research at UCLA investigated the impacts of wildfires on water quality and developed green infrastructure to mitigate these effects. At the Stanford School of Medicine, her current work aims to understand the health impacts of environmental exposures from wildfires. With 7 years of wildfire research experience, Onja frequently serves as a peer reviewer for wildfire-related publications and grants. Her work has been recognized by prestigious organizations such as the American Water Works Association and the American Society of Civil Engineers, featured in local news, and recently honored with the 2024 Women in Science Incentive Prize.

Originally hailing from the great state of Iowa, Naomi came to sunny California to complete her BA at Pomona College, where she studied environmental analysis with a focus in biology. She spent some time working as a research coordinator at a cancer center before heading to Heal the Bay, where she is a Water Quality Data Associate Specialist. Naomi works to maintain the weekly Beach and River Report Cards as well as the NowCast models. She is interested in the intersection between the environment and public health, and is always excited to use data to help us understand this connection! Outside of work, you may find her playing soccer, rock climbing, searching for the best restaurants this city has to offer, or making pizza with friends and family.

Zoë coordinates Heal the Bay’s Marine Protected Area (MPA) programming. Her work includes overseeing the MPA Watch Community Science Program as well as MPA advocacy, education, and outreach. She graduated from UCLA in 2023 with a B.S. in Marine Biology and has an avid passion for connecting people to their waterways, advocating for environmental conservation, and creating a Los Angeles more resilient to our changing climate. Her research background primarily revolves around marine biogeochemistry with a specific focus on both deep-sea microbial mats and constraining planetary habitability models through aquatic analogs. Outside of her passion for science and the ocean, she loves pottery, writing, and 2000’s rom-coms.

Emily works to keep our oceans and marine ecosystems healthy and clean by advocating for strong ocean conservation policies both locally and statewide. She focuses primarily on plastic pollution reduction efforts and on co-leading the Reusable LA coalition to promote reuse and refill across the Los Angeles region. She also oversees other ocean conservation initiatives at Heal the Bay, including marine protected area monitoring and coastal resiliency. Before arriving at Heal the Bay, Emily earned a Masters of Advanced Studies in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation from the Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, where she conducted research on sea turtle conservation in El Salvador. She also holds a Bachelor of Arts in Environmental Studies from Elon University. When not advocating for ocean rights, Emily can almost always be found on the shore catching a wave or soaking up some LA sunshine with her family.

Annelisa helps to keep L.A. water clean and safe by advocating for comprehensive and science-based water quality regulation and enforcement. She currently oversee Heal the Bay’s Water Quality efforts, including science, research, policy, and advocacy, as well as the Beach Report Card, NowCast, and River Report Card programs. Before joining the team at Heal the Bay, she worked with the Regional Water Quality Control Board in both the underground storage tank program and the surface water ambient monitoring program. Annelisa completed her master’s degree in geological sciences at CSU Northridge. In her free time she enjoys caving, canyoneering, and scuba diving.