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The train-the-trainer workshop handbook for facilitating the MarSci-LACE Mentor Development Workshops. 

The ocean has absorbed ~one third of the excess atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) released since the Industrial Revolution. When the ocean absorbs excess CO2, a series of chemical reactions occur that result in a reduction in seawater pH, a process called ocean acidification. The excess atmospheric CO2 is also resulting in warmer seawater temperatures. These stressors pose a threat to marine organisms, especially during earlier life stages (i.e., larvae). The larvae of species like the Florida stone crab (Menippe mercenaria) are free swimming, allowing a population to disperse and recruit into new habitats. After release, stone crab larvae undergo vertical swimming excursions in response to abiotic stimuli (gravity, light, pressure) allowing them to control their depth. Typically, newly hatched larvae respond to abiotic cues that would promote a shallower depth distribution, where surface currents can transport them offshore to complete development. As larvae develop offshore, they become less sensitive to certain abiotic stimuli, which promotes a deeper depth distribution that may expose them to variable current speeds, thus influencing the direction of advection (horizontal movement). Environmental stressors like ocean acidification and elevated seawater temperatures may also impact the larvae’s natural response to these abiotic stimuli throughout ontogeny (development). Changes in their natural swimming behavior due to climate stressors could, therefore, influence the transport and dispersal of the species. This guided-inquiry lesson challenges introductory marine biology and oceanography students to determine how future ocean pH and temperature projections could impact the swimming behavior of Florida stone crab larvae. 

Mote Marine Laboratory serves as the lead institution on the National Science Foundation funded Louis Stokes Alliance for Minority Participation: Marine Science Laboratory Alliance Center of Excellence (MarSci-LACE). The goal of this innovative Center of Excellence is to understand the impact of marine STEM undergraduate research experiences, specifically those conducted at non-academic, independent research institutions. The Center considers not only undergraduate students’ learning but also psychosocial factors, career aspirations, the impacts of the approaches and perspectives of mentors, institutional support of student learning, and mentor skill development. Through this project, a number of resources have been developed, including the MarSci-LACE Mentor Development Workshop, an Intern Resource Guide and website, a Mentor Resource Guide, and intern recruitment materials.