Fernando Magdaleno holds a PhD in Forestry Engineering and currently serves as Deputy Director General for Terrestrial and Marine Biodiversity at Spain’s Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge (MITECO).
He has extensive experience in environmental management, ecosystem conservation, and river restoration. For over two decades, he has worked in the fields of biodiversity, river ecology, and hydrological planning. He previously served as Deputy Assistant Director for Water Protection and Risk Management at MITECO (2020–2022).
In academia, he is an Associate Professor at the Technical University of Madrid (UPM), in the School of Forestry, Environmental and Natural Resources Engineering.
He completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of California, Berkeley (USA) focused on river and wetland restoration, riparian vegetation, environmental flows, and sustainable water management.
He is a frequent speaker at national and international conferences on biodiversity and land management. He advocates for the prevention and control of invasive alien species and ecological restoration as tools against environmental degradation.
He promotes policies on green infrastructure and ecological connectivity under Spain’s National Biodiversity Strategy. He has collaborated with international organizations and European projects such as LIFE Invasaqua and LIFE SHARA.
He promotes an integrative approach combining science, public policy, and social participation. Fernando is a leading figure in environmental management and ecological policy in Spain.
Maddalena Visser holds a Bachelor’s degree in International and European Law from the University of Groningen and a Master’s in International Environmental Law and Law of the Sea from Utrecht University. After working as a researcher at the Netherlands Institute for the Law of the Sea, focusing on equity in fisheries management, Maddalena spent four years at the Netherlands Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, where she worked on European fisheries management. Currently based at the European Commission’s DG Environment, Maddalena is part of the Nature Conservation Unit, working on the implementation of EU nature legislation in the marine environment. She is closely involved in the marine targets under the Nature Restoration Law, which are now entering the implementation phase.
Sahar Stevenson-Jones is a committed Marine Restoration Project Officer at the Society for Ecological Restoration, Europe, with experience in contributing to EU-funded projects that address biodiversity loss, climate resilience, and community engagement in coastal and deep-sea ecosystems. She coordinates activities for large-scale restoration initiatives such as CLIMAREST and REDRESS which focus on nature-based solutions, stakeholder-inclusive planning, and science-to-policy integration, and coordinates the Marine Restoration Working Group, currently chaired by Professor Roberto Danovaro. With a passion for equitable, evidence-based restoration, effective standardisation and best practice, and accurate science communication, Sahar brings both technical expertise and strategic vision to the challenge of restoring marine environments, and her work embodies the values of innovation, collaboration and sustainability.
Alison Debney is a leader in marine and freshwater conservation, with over 25 years of experience. She heads the UK Marine & Freshwater Conservation Programme at ZSL and is passionate about restoring coastal habitats, with a particular affection for estuaries. Alison is a founding member of NORA, founder and co-chair of the Native Oyster Network – UK & Ireland, and Chair of the Essex Native Oyster Restoration Initiative. She believes successful restoration alliances are built on collaboration, knowledge-sharing, and fostering good relationships. Her leadership of the Transforming the Thames Seascape Partnership highlights the importance she puts on collective action for lasting environmental impact. She espouses the need for interconnectedness for successful outcomes.
Stefano Carboni is a marine biologist by training with 20 years’ experience in aquaculture research and training in higher education, currently Chair of the Native Oyster Restoration Alliance (NORA) Board.
“My main interest resides in applied and fundamental aquaculture research and in how knowledge of the biology of commercially and ecologically relevant marine species is used to improve sustainability and habitat restoration. The research areas I actively pursue focus on reproductive physiology and nutrition, genetic and environmental contributions to key phenotypic traits in relevant bivalves and finfish species. Main impact of my research is aimed at the aquaculture industry and regulators, via development and execution of research and innovation projects. My activities develop in collaboration with industry players and government bodies. I currently lead the Sustainable Aquaculture group at the International Marine Centre in Italy.”
Dr Richard Lilley (RJ) has over 15 years of experience of working in marine systems. He is passionate about education, particularly marine science communication and outdoor learning. His academic work focuses on seascape restoration and the sustainable supply chain management of small-scale capture fisheries. RJ is particularly interested in the role of seagrass meadows in providing local food security and fostering collaboration within the wider seagrass community. RJ’s work in Europe is primarily focussed on identifying seagrass ecosystem restoration opportunities and developing local capacity to support this. He is a cofounder of the UK marine NGO Project Seagrass where he worked until 2023. In 2022 he founded The Seagrass Consortium and in 2024 moved to Rijksuniversiteit Groningen in the Netherlands and found the European Seagrass Restoration Alliance (ESRA). ESRA was founded to provide a platform for the European seagrass restoration community to collaborate and engage in knowledge exchange. From 8-10 April 2025, ESRA facilitated the 2nd European Seagrass Restoration Workshop in collaboration with l’office français de la biodiversité within le Parc naturel marin du Bassin d’Arcachon.
Professor Joanne Preston is a leading expert in coastal restoration ecology, based at the Institute of Marine Sciences, University of Portsmouth. Her Seascape Ecology and Restoration Lab group focuses on understanding relationships between biodiversity, structure and function of temperate coastal habitats (such as oyster reefs, seagrass meadows and saltmarshes), and the ecological connectivity that occurs between them. This research aims to advance effective restoration practice and scientific monitoring of temperate seascapes, whilst informing policy.
In 2017 she founded the UK/Ireland Native Oyster Network with the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), is a founding advisory board member for the European Native Oyster Restoration Alliance, and currently leads its Monitoring Working Group. She edited a series of habitat restoration handbooks launched at COP26, sits on the Oversight Panel for the Endangered Landscapes and Seascapes Programme, leads monitoring for the Solent Seascape Project, and works on projects for DEFRA, CEFAS and NERC. In 2022, she co-led the first UK conference on Temperate seascape ecological connectivity, with the second held in June 2025.
Ute Jacob, a marine ecologist by training, did her PhD on the structure and functioning of Antarctic Marine Ecosystems, she worked on how food web approaches can support marine conservation and is now the Liaison for Science & Conservation at the Helmholtz Institute for Functional Marine Biodiversity at the University of Oldenburg where she co-leads the Transfer Office for Marine Biodiversity Change. She and her colleagues have very recently begun implementing the Knowledge Exchange Network for Marine Biodiversity, as part of the Horizon Europe funded, Bio-Agora project.
Dr. Ramón Filgueira is a Professor in the Marine Affairs Program at Dalhousie University (Canada) and holds a 20% appointment at the Institute of Marine Research (Norway). As the co-chair of the ICES working group on Social and Economic Dimensions of Aquaculture, Dr. Filgueira bridges the gap between natural and social sciences, leveraging his interdisciplinary background. His research centers on the context of bivalve ecophysiology, particularly in relation to external stressors and their role in ecosystem functioning. Further, Dr. Filgueira is interested in the ecosystem services that bivalves provide, which can enhance the resilience of coastal ecosystems under a changing world.
