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Callum Michael Roberts is a British marine conservation biologist, oceanographer, science communicator, author and research scholar at the University of Exeter.[1] He was formerly at the University of York.[2] He is best known for his research and advocacy related to marine reserves and the environmental impact of fishing.
Callum Roberts
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| Alma mater | University of York |
| Scientific career | |
| Institutions | University of Exeter |
| Thesis | Aspects of coral reef fish community structure in the Saudi Arabian Red Sea and on the Great Barrier Reef (1986) |
Roberts' work examines the impact of human activityonmarine ecosystems, particularly coral reefs. His research output has examined the benefits of marine reserves and no-fishing zones on sustainable fisheries and biodiversity.[3][4][5][6] He began his career studying reefs of the Red SeainSaudi Arabia, and has also worked in the Maldives and on the Great Barrier Reef.[7]
Roberts is also an active supporter of the Deep Sea Conservation Coalition. He is the Chief Scientific Advisor to Blue Marine Foundation[1] and an Ambassador for World Wide Fund for Nature.[8]
Since 2011 Roberts has written occasional opinion editorials for The Guardian[9] on various marine conservation topics, including overfishing.[10] He has also appeared in the documentary films The End of the Line (2009) and Seaspiracy (2021)[11] and was chief scientific adviser to the BBC's 2017 documentary series Blue Planet II.[1][8]
He is the author of two award-winning books, The Unnatural History of the Sea (Rachel Carson Award, 2007), which examined the impact of human activity and fishing on marine ecosystems over the last thousand years,[12][13] and Ocean of Life (Mountbatten Award, 2013), which covers more recent changes in the ocean and proposes reforms to facilitate their recovery.[14][15] His latest book is Reef Life: An Underwater Memoir (2019).[1][7]
1999-2003. Member of editorial board of Conservation Biology, published by the Society for Conservation Biology.
1997-2000. Member of Editorial board of journal Animal Conservation, published by Cambridge University Press.
1996. Senior editor of the proceedings of a symposium: "Marine reserves: Function and Design" held at the 8th International Coral Reef Symposium, Panama.
1991-1996. Co-editor of Reef Encounter, Newsletter of the International Society for Reef Studies.