Staff & Contributors

STAFF
 

Peter Neill

Peter is founder and director of the World Ocean Observatory and serves as host of World Ocean Radio, a weekly podcast about the health of the ocean. In 2016 he received an appointment with the Climate Change Institute and represents the W2O as a Research Associate; he previously served 20 years as President of the South Street Seaport Museum, New York; is co-founder of The Sound School and The Harbor School; and has dedicated his career to marine affairs. His most recent book, The Once and Future Ocean: Notes Toward a New Hydraulic Society, is available wherever books are sold. He lives in downeast Maine with his partner Mary.
 

Trisha Badger

Trisha serves as the Managing Director for the World Ocean Observatory. She is the Associate Editor of both the World Ocean Observer and World Ocean Journal, is producer of World Ocean Radio, and is responsible for maintaining, expanding and marketing the programs and special projects of the W2O. Trish majored in 19th century English Literature and Creative Writing at CUNY Hunter College in New York City, and brings years of maritime and experiential education administrative experience to the W20. Prior to the W2O she served as Director of Communications for the Apprenticeshop, a school for traditional wooden boat building, in Rockland, Maine. She is also a freelance graphic designer, web developer, and private chef, and lives with her husband Kevin on a small farm in Jefferson, Maine.

CONTRIBUTORS

Tundi Agardy, PhD

Curator, World Ocean Forum

In early 2020 Dr. Tundi Agardy joined the World Ocean Forum as its new curator. Dr. Agardy works at the interface between science and policy in marine systems around the world. She is an internationally renowned expert in marine conservation, with extensive field experience in Africa, Asia, the Caribbean, the Mediterranean and North America. Her major research interests and publications focus on coastal and marine planning, ocean zoning, marine protected areas, ecosystem services, and marine ecosystem based management. She will be an instrumental member of the World Ocean Forum team and we look forward to the collaboration.

Bjorn Grigholm, PhD

Platform and Educational Developer

Bjorn serves as content and platform developer for the World Ocean Observatory, creating an educational gaming experience (World Ocean  Explorer) for students ages 10 and beyond. Bjorn is a research assistant professor at the Climate Change Institute at the University of Maine, focusing on reconstructing past climate and environmental variability from ice core records stored in glaciers from around the world. As such, he actively works to introduce climate science and share climate data with the public in an approachable way via educational websites, applications, brochures, blogging, animations and short films. His interests also include resilience and vulnerability assessments, working with organizations such as the Union of Concerned Scientists (USC), to help inform national-to-local scale climate adaptation and mitigation policy. 

John Smith

Web Developer, Technical Advisor

John is proprietor of Whitelancer Web Development. He serves as World Ocean Observatory's Technical Advisor and Webmaster. John has been a programmer since the age of 14, and continues to expand his knowledge after having graduated with a degree in computer science in 2002. After working as the sole web developer at a local magazine company for many years, John was ready for more. In 2007, he transformed Whitelancer Web Development into a full-time business.