Carlos Duarte

Carlos Duarte is a marine science professor and a leader in many branches of biological oceanography and marine ecology. He probably is his generation’s most versatile marine environmentalist – he works from the Earth’s tropics to the poles, covering from coastal systems to open gyre, from microalgae to microbes, etc.

In the past he has held the positions of assistant professor at the CSIC’s Institute of Marine Sciences in Barcelona (1989-1990) and the Centre for Advanced Studies in Blanes (1990-1998) and research professor at the CSIC-Universidad de las Islas Baleares’ Mediterranean Institute of Advanced Studies in the Balearic Islands (1999-2014).

Carlos Duarte has organised and led the Malaspina Circumnavigation Expedition to assess the status of the world oceans with the participation of over 400 scientists from across the globe which made key discoveries about deep ocean phenomena and biodiversity. He has also worked at the University of Western Australia’s Oceans Institute researching coral reef and he headed the Red Sea Research Centre at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Saudi Arabia.

Another noteworthy project Duarte has been involved in is the development of a new generation of sensors that turns animals in “ocean explorers”, thereby enabling an in-depth study of marine health and megafauna movements.

Today, alongside researcher Susana Agustí, Duarte heads an international study that brings together the world’s leading marine scientists from across four continents, in 10 countries and 16 universities. The study is laying out a roadmap of actions required for the planet’s marine life to recover full abundance by 2050, on the basis that although humans have greatly altered marine life to its detriment in the past, the researchers have found evidence of the remarkable resilience of marine life, which they believe can be the basis of a more sustainable, ocean-based economy.