Team & Expert Advisory Committee
Our Team and Expert advisory committee come from multiple disciplines and backgrounds. They are scientists, academics, researchers, ecologists, biologists, engineers, and more. Our Experts, with their varied profiles and complementary expertise, form the backbone of our Foundation. They provide our community with the sure knowledge that the projects we undertake are supported and backed by a high degree of proven, scientific data.
The Team is also all the people who put their time and skills at the service of the Foundation to support the founders on a daily basis.
This team, made of men and women from all walks of life, around a common project led by the founder's team, strives at all times to defend the values and ambitions of the BlueOceanTrust Foundation.
All our team is committed volunteer and involved alongside the BlueOceanTrust Foundation.
The Team
Joshua Barton
Expeditions, EcoTourism & Photography
Department
Joshua Barton is an American businessman based in India.
He is an underwater wildlife photographer who was travelled to all cornes of the globe capturing unique moments on camera.
His underwater photographs of a blue whale casualty from ship strike was among the first ever, and underwater imagery of a blue whale that had been attacked by orca was the first such pictures captured and conclusive proof of orca predation on blues.
He published books, and his photographs have been published in numerous newspapers and worldwide magazines making him a recognized name in his field.
He works with and regularly interacts with many members of the scientific community in several parts of the world, and participates into the growth of wildlife documentation and education programs.
He is currently an advisor and project leader for other conservation foundations in the world, and he is charged by BlueOceanTrust, among other things, to develop the Label certification and Eco-tourism program.
Roland Shine
Bio-diversity & Diving Advisor
Department
Roland Shine, New Zealander, is an Environmental Scientist working in Environmental Impact Assessments with a special interest in marine biology and ecosystems. Over the course of his 10 + year career, Roland has conducted marine ecology surveys at numerous locations around the GCC region including the UAE, Oman, Saudi Arabia and more. In addition, Roland Padi Rescue Diver, is an amateur freediver and has a passion for the sea & conservation issue relating to marine life.
Roland has traveled the world with friends and colleagues from BlueOceanTrust, experiencing firsthand some of the marvels that we seek to preserve against the increasing footprint of human society; the awe of looking eye to eye with a Blue whale off Sri Lanka and the beauty of a fever of Manta rays circling above in the Maldives both defy description. It is Roland's hope that future generations will be also share in such captivating experiences.
"I have witnessed first hand the changing face of the planet's coastal reefs; seeing pristine reefs turned into shadows of what they were the previous year following unprecedented sea temperatures. More than ever before we have to be agents of change in our daily lives both through our personal actions and in the awareness and motivation that we spread to others."
Anne Escaravage
Marketing, Communication
& Social Media Department
Anne Escaravage, is a graduate of La Sorbonne in Paris, with a major in American Literature and a thesis on blues and black poetry.
For the past twenty years, she has specialized in marketing for high-end brands and recently launched her agency, I Communicate, a company entirely devoted to raising awareness through branding, communications and social media.
Strong ethics, hard work and a keen insight into today’s marketing tools are key to developing a mission, a mission with purpose: Blue Ocean Trust foundation.
The challenge today is not only raising awareness. It lies in finding a true audience, which will care for what is truly at stake today: our planet and our oceans.
The goal is to create platforms for a community of like-minded souls, who seek to turn things around, with ambition, professionalism and earnest values.
Magali Riehl
Educational program
& Conservation Department
Magali Riehl, is a graduate of the prestigious Ecole des Mines in Paris with a master's degree of engineering and environmental management, and of ENSA.M (national school of higher agricultural science).
During her previous professional career for French governmental organization, she acted and developed an expertise in pollution management of aquatic environments
Strongly attached to nature, aware of environmental impacts and concerned about the world she's going to leave to her children, she decide to join BlueOceanTrust foundation to provide additional support through her expertise and values.
Daniel G. During
Lobbying & network
Program development Department
Daniel G. During, is a graduate of the Chalons en Champagne Hotel Management school. He was born in Argentina and has spent most of his life living and working across the globe.
Founder and managing director of a successful company with offices in 4 continents, he is a an authentic adventure travel passionate, who has walked thousands of kilometres to meet various communities and discover the nature world.
Sensitized to charitable actions and having directly witnessed during his travels the damage caused to nature, he decided to act personally by joining the Blue Ocean Trust Foundation and taking charge of the development of networks and lobbying activities
Expert Advisory Committee
Robert Sellem
Scientific and Technical Advisor Expert
General and research programs
Robert Sellem is a graduate of the Ecole Supérieure of Telecommunications in Paris.
Lead engineer and division head of electronic physics at the Institute of Nuclear Physics,
he is currently a retired volunteer facilitator and advisor of an instrumentalisation platform for the National Center of Scientific Research (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique - CNRS)
He has led numerous projects in the fields of expertise focused on the development of original instrumentation for fundamental research in physics.
Robert is called upon to counsel, drive and validate the coherence of project procedures for the foundation’s scientific and technical plans
François Wencélius
Natural ressources Advisor Expert
Government organization program
Francois Wencelius, an agronomist engineer, graduate of GREF (Rural Development and Forestry), now retired, continues to act as a free-lance consultant for NGOs in the preservation of threatened environments and biodiversity.
Specialized in water ressources and forestry and throughout a career that has taken him to the four corners of the globe, he has led research projects in environmental management and supervision.
His project expertise in natural ressource management, biodiversity, conservation, execution and management of forests, have been implemented as a part of his technical and managerial duties for - amongst others - the World Bank (IBRD) and the United Nations Organization (FAO).
Strengthened by this acclaimed expertise, he will advise the foundation’s land projects, their eventual impact on oceans and will help drive programs that require the implementation of procedures and relationships with international and governmental organizations.
Eve Jourdain
Orca Scientist Expert
Orca and whale program
Eve Jourdain is scientist with a Masters' studies in marine biology.
Oceans and killer whales have always been a passion. Eve started working with captive killer whales. Working daily alongside these smart and beautiful animals further gave her a strong vocation for killer whale research and conservation. After diverse professional experiences in killer whale research and as a whale watching guide, she decided to build up her own research project, and so she created with Richard Karoliussen the association
After several years of driving boats in rough Arctic conditions, Richard has undoubtedly become some of the best skippers for leading whale research surveys, and has also made flying drones above whales his speciality.
Through the ongoing research project, Eve aims at completing her PhD.
Fabrice Schnöller
Biologist and Acoustic researcher Expert
Educational and filming program
Fabrice Schnöller is a french engineer and freelance biologist and acoustic researcher. He's founder of Click Research and Darewin program.
Fabrice develops new research programs with 360° video, audio captation and VR/AR tools.
He is an experimented photographer and freediver, fascinating by marine animals.
Specialized expert in their language and communication, he has been working for years to identify, list and break through the codings of their click communication.
more details on: (www.clickresearchs.com) (www.darewin.org)
Howard Martenstyn
Blue whale Researcher Expert
Marine mamal program
Howard Martenstyn is an independent Sri Lankan marine researcher, Blue Whale expert and Director of the Research Center for Indian Ocean Marine Mammals. Recognized and honoured several time for his conservation work on marine mammals.
Is an author of several books like "Out of Blue" and many scientific publications; and is focused on research and education as it pertains to conservation of wildlife and its environment.
(more details on: http://www.slam.lk)
