Chris Kelble

Dr Kelble joined the National Marine Fisheries’ Office of Science and Technology as their Marine Ecosystems Division Director in June of 2024

Prior to assuming the role of Acting Deputy Director of NOAA’s Atlantic Oceanographic and Meteorological Laboratory (AOML), Dr. Chris Kelble served as the Director of the Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems Division of AOML. He was also the principal investigator for the Ecosystem Assessment and Modeling Laboratory within the Ocean Chemistry and Ecosystems Division at AOML. Dr. Kelble’s primary research interest is to holistically understand how humans alter coastal marine ecosystems and in turn how these coastal ecosystems help to support coastal communities. His research has a heavy emphasis on research to applications by working closely with the resource managers most likely to use these research results. Dr. Kelble’s research has ranged from understanding how altered watersheds affect salinity variability and thus habitat suitability to understanding how natural and anthropogenic drivers of change affect the Gulf of Mexico ecosystem. He currently serves on leadership committees for NOAA’s Integrated Ecosystem Assessment Program, NOAA’s Ecosystem Indicators Working Group, NOAA’s Biscayne Bay Habitat Blueprint Focus Area, NOAA’s Gulf of Mexico Regional Collaboration Team, the US Interagency Blue Carbon Working Group, and the Science Coordination Group of the South Florida Ecosystem Restoration Task Force.