Ibukun Jacob Adewumi Ibukun Jacob Adewumi has an interdisciplinary background: besides being initially trained as an Urban Planner, he earned a master degree from the highly competitive Erasmus Mundus Joint Masters in Maritime Spatial Planning (MSP) organised by the Universita Iuav of Venezia-Italy, University of Sevilla-Spain, and the University of the Azores-Portugal, receiving extensive academic and professional trainings on key issues related to policy formulation and strategies for marine space to improve resources management from a socio- economic, environmental and legal perspective. For the past nine years, Ibukun has worked and researched at the science and policy interface — using broader theories of socioeconomics and environmental management to build a deeper knowledge about human-environment relations and institutional partnerships. He is highly experienced on cross-cutting marine issues, particularly, the assessment of sustainability in Blue Economy/ Growth, MSP, Integrated Coastal Zone Management, MPAs, and ocean governance. He has since become increasingly involved in projects and initiatives on these topics at global, regional and local scales, most recently as a Coastal and Marine Management Specialist consultant with the IOC-UNESCO — providing technical support for the implementation of ICZM, MSP and sustainable blue economy strategies in the Central Africa sub-region. Currently, Ibukun is a member of the UNFCC/NWP’s Expert Group on the Ocean and leads the group’s thematic areas of technology and innovation. Also, he is a Liaison Officer (West Africa) for the World Ocean Council, facilitating the organisation's outreach and partnership activities to foster Blue Economy development in the Sub-region. At Whitaker Institute for Innovation and Societal Change, National University of Ireland, Ibukun is currently a Research Associate focusing on stakeholders’ participation in West Africa’s Blue Economy policies. Apart from having English as a first language, he speaks French, with a working knowledge of Spanish, Portuguese and Italian. Complimentarily to these, Ibukun is a global player in the development of a sustainable 21st-century coastal and marine space, having membership of various marine research bodies/networks and various regional/international Working Groups on ocean governance and the Blue Economy.