University of Hawai’i student wins Zonta local, international STEM awards | Kauai Now

A University of Hawai’i at Mānoa marine biology researcher has earned top international recognition for pioneering, community-rooted science. Doctoral candidate Danielle Bartz has been named a 2026 Zonta International Women in STEM Award recipient, advancing from a Zonta Club of Hilo selection at the local level to join an elite cohort of just 16 honorees representing nine countries worldwide. The global award carries a $10,000 prize, following a $2,000 local honor that propelled her nomination.

Bartz’s work centers on environmental DNA (eDNA) to reveal what’s living in coastal waters without the need to see or catch it. By detecting trace genetic material left behind by marine organisms, eDNA can rapidly map biodiversity and flag ecosystem changes. She designed a low-cost, portable water filtration system that brings this powerful technique within reach for field teams and communities with limited resources—a potential game-changer for conservation monitoring across islands and remote coastlines.

Her research bridges advanced molecular tools with time-tested ecological practices and local knowledge. In Hawai’i, Bartz has applied that approach to investigate the disappearance of a shark species with deep cultural and ecological significance. Pairing eDNA surveys with insights from fishers, community members, and place-based practitioners, she’s building an evidence base that strengthens both science and stewardship.

That integrated strategy has already yielded consequential outcomes. Findings from her work contributed unprecedented evidence confirming shark nursery habitat in Hilo Bay, leading to the first formal recognition of the bay as a vital shark area in the literature of the International Union for the Conservation of Nature. The designation underscores how targeted, community-informed science can accelerate protection for key species and habitats.

Beyond species detection, Bartz’s eDNA toolkit is designed to be rugged, affordable, and replicable. Traditional biodiversity monitoring can be expensive and logistically demanding—especially over large areas or in regions with limited lab infrastructure. By lowering costs and simplifying field workflows, her system opens the door for more frequent sampling, faster responses to ecological change, and broader participation in environmental decision-making.

For Bartz, the technical innovation is inseparable from the social dimensions of conservation. She emphasizes collaboration with local and Indigenous knowledge holders, integrating cultural perspectives and ecological observations that have often been undervalued in formal science. This co-production of knowledge, she notes, helps align research priorities with community needs while improving the accuracy and impact of conservation actions.

The Zonta Women in STEM Award spotlights emerging leaders between 18 and 35 whose work advances science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. By recognizing Bartz among this global cohort, Zonta highlights research that not only breaks new ground in biodiversity science, but also reshapes who gets to do science—and for whom it serves. The organization’s broader mission centers on empowering women and girls, and this award is one way it helps amplify inclusive innovation at a pivotal stage in researchers’ careers.

Looking ahead, Bartz aims to scale her field-ready eDNA tools to help coastal communities monitor reefs, fisheries, and critical habitats across the Pacific and beyond. As climate change and human pressures intensify, she argues that accessible technology paired with place-based knowledge will be essential to safeguarding biodiversity.

In Hawai’i, where the ocean is both a cultural foundation and a living laboratory, her work illustrates how cutting-edge molecular ecology can thrive alongside ancestral stewardship. The result is a model for conservation that is faster, more inclusive, and better tuned to the rhythms of the places it seeks to protect.