Gladys Mwaka Holeh, a doctoral researcher at VLIZ – Flanders Marine Institute and Ghent University, has been selected as a Blue Food Futures Fellow at the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions. The prestigious fellowship supports early-career researchers advancing the role of blue foods – foods sourced from aquatic systems – in sustainable global food systems.
Gladys Mwaka Holeh, a doctoral researcher affiliated with VLIZ – Flanders Marine Institute and Ghent University, has been selected as a Blue Food Futures Fellow at the Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions.
Her research explores how artisanal seaweed aquaculture can strengthen nutrition, climate resilience, and coastal livelihoods along the Kenyan coast and across the Western Indian Ocean. By examining this rapidly growing sector, she investigates how seaweed farming can contribute to both local food security and climate adaptation.
The Blue Food Futures Program selects two early-career researchers each year who are committed to elevating the role of blue foods in the transformation of global food systems. During the six-month fellowship, participants receive mentorship, access to a global policy network, and research and travel support to help translate scientific evidence into actionable policy outcomes.
This fellowship by Stanford Center for Ocean Solutions (Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, Stanford Doerr School of Sustainability) recognizes Gladys Mwaka Holeh as an emerging leader contributing expertise and dedication to shaping the future of sustainable blue foods.
Read more about the fellows:
> https://bluefood.earth/news/blue-food-futures-program-welcomes-2026-fellows
