Dr. Simon J. Pittman is our lead advisor and Associate Researcher at the University of Oxford’s Seascape Ecology Lab. Simon has been instrumental in building the foundations for the science of seascape ecology and co-creating the blue urban concepts of City Marine Parks and Ocean Cities to address sustainable development goals and transition to regenerative cultures. His work has supported the campaign for Plymouth Sound National Marine Park – the UK’s first city-community led marine park.
Dr. Nathan Bennett is Chair of the People and the Ocean Specialist Group for the IUCN, a Postdoc Fellow at both the Smithsonian Institution and at the
Institute for the Oceans and Fisheries at UBC. Dr. Bennett’s research interests broadly focus on the interactions between humans and the environment.
Madeleine Shaw is a multiple award-winning serial social entrepreneur based in Vancouver BC. Founder of Aisle (formerly Lunapads), one of the first companies worldwide to champion natural menstrual health, Madeleine is author of The Greater Good: Social Entrepreneurship for Everyday People Who Want to Change the World.
Ian Gill is an Australian-Canadian writer, documentary filmmaker, and social entrepreneur. Author of four books, he is now co-owner of the independent Vancouver bookstore Upstart & Crow, as well as a contributing editor at The Tyee. One of Canada’s most respected environmentalists, he was a founding director EcoTrust Canada and a co-creator of Salmon Nation. Ian lives in Vancouver and Clayoquot Sound.
Michael Beattie is Executive Vice President and Chief Investment Officer for Grosvenor Americas, a prominent international property developer with significant assets in British Columbia.
An avid boating enthusiast, he has a deep appreciation for marine protection – and in particular, has a particular interest in restoring False Creek to a healthier condition.
Linda Nowlan is a Senior environmental lawyer, nonprofit executive, and sustainability professional. Currently working as Senior Director, UBC Sustainability Initiative. Previously Staff Counsel and Executive Director at West Coast Environmental Law, WWF-Canada’s Director of Pacific Conservation, UBC Faculty Research Associate, diplomat for the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office, litigation lawyer representing architects and engineers.
Dr Chris Harley studies the impact of climate change on rocky coasts. His lab is interested in how climatic factors, such as temperature, CO2, pH, and biological relationships such as predation and facilitation, interact to create ecological patterns in time and space. In his research, he blends experiments and observations in the lab and field to test novel hypotheses.