Abby is a marine research scientist focused on aquatic plastic pollution and the owner/operator of Long Cove Sea Farm, an oyster aquaculture business in Deer Isle, Maine. Born and raised in Stonington, Abby developed a passion for the ocean, islands and traveling. She earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Tasmania and a Master of Philosophy in Human Ecology from the College of the Atlantic. After mapping the canopy of old-growth temperate rainforests and trapping Tasmanian devils, Abby studied and published research on seahorse and pipefish behavior and diversity in Papua New Guinea. She has traveled the Southern Oceans and South Pacific by boat, trekked the Himalaya, explored the Middle East, researched sea turtles and big cats in South and Central America, dived Mediterranean wrecks, and worked aboard schooners and lobster boats in the Gulf of Maine. On her travels, she saw one thing in common everywhere: plastic pollution.

Abby directed global microplastic pollution research since 2013, developing the most diverse and largest known dataset available to-date. She published multiple papers on the subject and is featured in numerous films. She continues to conduct field work and actively be involved in plastic pollution education, policy and legislation. She is currently designing and developing plastic-free aquaculture gear for oyster cultivation.