Keynote Speakers
Keynote Speakers
Prof. Dr. Qing He
Director, SKLEC, East China Normal University, China
Prof. Qing He is a distinguished scholar in estuarine hydrodynamics and sediment dynamics at SKLEC, ECNU. Her work examines sediment transport, boundary-layer processes, and estuarine morphological evolution. She obtained his D.Sc. from ECNU and has held visiting appointments at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (USA), Louisiana State University, and ANSTO (Australia). Prof. He’s integrative research on sediment flux and estuarine stability offers important lessons for coastal restoration and environmental management in dynamic deltaic systems across Asia and beyond.
Prof. Dr. Pierre Failler
Professor of Economics & Director, Centre for Blue Governance, University of Portsmouth, UK
Prof. Pierre Failler is a global leader in blue-economy policy, environmental economics, and marine governance. As Director of the Centre for Blue Governance, he coordinates international programs across Europe, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. His research quantifies ecosystem services, climate impacts, and sustainable fisheries governance to inform global marine policy. Having led more than 40 international R&D projects, Prof. Failler’s work bridges science and policy to ensure that ocean resources foster equitable and sustainable development.
Prof. Dr. Chaolun Li
Director General, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology (SCSIO), CAS, China
Chaolun Li obtained his PhD degree from Institute of oceanology, Chinese Academy of Sciences (IOCAS) in 2002. Since then, He works in marine ecology team of IOCAS. As a visiting scientist, He worked in the University of Tromsø, Norway during 2004-2005, and in the University of Connecticut, USA in 2007. In 2022，he moved to the South China Sea Oceanography Institute CAS as Director General. His research focuses on marine ecology in China's coastal waters, polar regions, and the deep sea. He has led over 20 major research projects, including the National Key R&D Program, the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), and the CAS Strategic Priority Research Program. He has published more than 160 academic papers, contributed to five monographs, and holds over 10 patents. He is serving as the member of SCAR Scientific Committee, the member of Working Group 157 of SCOR, the vice chairman of the Chinese Society of Oceanology and Limnology, the deputy Director of the Marine Ecology Committee at the Ecological Society of China.
Prof. Dr. Xiuzhen Li
Deputy Director, SKLEC, East China Normal University, China
Prof. Xiuzhen Li is an internationally recognized expert on coastal wetland restoration, blue-carbon ecosystems, and ecological landscape modeling. She earned her Ph.D. from Wageningen University, the Netherlands, and serves as a Professor at ECNU’s State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research. Her research applies remote sensing and GIS to assess carbon dynamics and habitat resilience ecosystems. Prof. Li serves on the Executive Committee of Future Earth Coasts and is former Council Chair of IALE. She has published widely and serves on editorial boards including Ocean & Coastal Management and Ecological Engineering, contributing significantly to global blue-carbon research.
Distinguished Speakers
Distinguished Speakers
Prof. Dr. Yan Du
Director, State Key Laboratory of Tropical Oceanography, SCSIO, CAS, China
Prof. Yan Du is a leading oceanographer specializing in tropical ocean-climate dynamics, monsoon variability, and global warming feedback. He earned his Ph.D. from the Ocean University of China and leads the State Key Laboratory of Tropical Oceanography (LTO) at SCSIO. Formerly affiliated with University of Hawaii, CSIRO (Australia), and NOAA (USA), he has authored over 120 papers, with several cited in IPCC AR5. Prof. Du’s research on Indo-Pacific climate coupling and ocean heat content underpins regional climate prediction and adaptation strategies.
Prof. Ahmed Mustafa
Professor, Department of Biological Sciences;
Director, Life Sciences Resource Center, Purdue University Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA
Dr. Ahmed Mustafa is a distinguished Professor at Purdue University Fort Wayne, USA, specializing in physiology, aquatic biology, and pharmacology. His research on stress and immunity in animals explores biotechnological alternatives to drug therapy. Known for mentoring students, he guides undergraduates and graduates in research that has garnered grants, awards, and publications. Dr. Mustafa holds a B.Sc. (Hons) and M.Sc. from the University of Dhaka, a Cand. Mag. from the University of Bergen, and a Ph.D. plus a Diploma in University Teaching from the University of New Brunswick. A talented scholar, he edits and reviews journals and has earned honors such as the 2022 Indiana Academy of Science Fellow Award.
Prof. Ning ZHAO
Professor, SKLEC, East China Normal University, China
Prof. Ning Zhao is a distinguished professor at the School of Marine Science and the State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research, East China Normal University. He earned his Ph.D. from the MIT–WHOI Joint Program in Oceanography and a B.S. from Nanjing University. His research focuses on paleoceanography, paleoclimatology, sea-level change, and the Anthropocene. Before joining ECNU, he worked as a postdoctoral scientist at the Max Planck Institute for Chemistry (2017–2020). Prof. Zhao has contributed to leading journals such as Nature Communications and Nature Geoscience and served as a reviewer for high-impact publications and the IPCC 6th Assessment Report. His studies on past ocean-climate interactions significantly advance understanding of global environmental change.
Prof. Dr. Ying Wu
Professor, SKLEC, East China Normal University, China
Prof. Ying Wu is a leading marine organic geochemist whose research focuses on carbon and nutrient cycling, estuarine hypoxia, and terrigenous inputs. A Ph.D. graduate of the Ocean University of Qingdao, she is Professor at SKLEC (ECNU) and has served as visiting scientist at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and Alfred Wegener Institute, Germany. Prof. Wu leads multiple national projects funded by NSFC on organic-matter transport and biogeochemical processes in the Changjiang Estuary. Her pioneering studies link land-based inputs with coastal carbon dynamics, enhancing knowledge of estuarine responses to climate and human stressors.
Prof. Dr. Pavel Y. Semkin
V.I. Il’ichev Pacific Oceanological Institute, Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia
Prof. Pavel Semkin is a senior marine ecologist at the Pacific Oceanological Institute, focusing on biogeochemical and carbonate processes in Far-Eastern marginal seas. His research explores production–destruction dynamics, eutrophication, and carbon cycling across marine water columns, sea-ice systems, and sediments. Prof. Semkin’s studies on pore-water chemistry and early diagenesis have advanced global understanding of nutrient transformations and coastal ecosystem health under environmental change.
Prof. Dr. Yang Zhang
Deputy Director, State Key Laboratory of Breeding Biotechnology and Sustainable Aquaculture, SCSIO, CAS, China
Prof. Yang Zhang is a marine biotechnologist specializing in genomics, aquaculture innovation, and marine organism adaptation. With over 130 scientific papers, he leads research on molecular breeding and environmental tolerance in aquatic species. As Deputy Director at SCSIO’s Aquaculture Laboratory, Prof. Zhang promotes sustainable solutions to strengthen food security and ecosystem-based aquaculture within China’s Blue Economy framework.
Prof. Dr. Lanlan Zhang
Associate Researcher, South China Sea Institute of Oceanology, CAS, China
Dr. Chuanxiu Luo is a marine geoscientist whose research centers on Asian monsoon evolution, marine palynology, and environmental archaeology. She earned her Ph.D. from Sun Yat-sen University and has led multiple projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Her innovative use of pollen and spore analysis in sediment cores from the Indian and South China seas gives us important information about monsoon interactions and paleoenvironmental change, establishing her as a rising expert in Asian climate reconstruction.
Prof. Dr. Chuanxiu Luo
Key Laboratory of Marginal Sea and Ocean Geology, SCSIO, CAS, China
Dr. Chuanxiu Luo is a marine geoscientist whose research centers on Asian monsoon evolution, marine palynology, and environmental archaeology. She earned her Ph.D. from Sun Yat-sen University and has led multiple projects funded by the National Natural Science Foundation of China. Her innovative use of pollen and spore analysis in sediment cores from the Indian and South China seas gives us important information about monsoon interactions and paleoenvironmental change, establishing her as a rising expert in Asian climate reconstruction.
Dr. Lijun He
Associate Professor, SKLEC, ECNU, China
Dr. Lijun He specializes in phylogeography, molecular ecology, and palaeoecology of marine organisms. Her work investigates the genetic population structure and evolutionary response of coastal species to climatic and oceanographic variability. A Ph.D. graduate of the Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, he serves as Associate Professor at SKLEC and has conducted postdoctoral research at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (USA). Dr. He’s integrative studies connect evolutionary biology with oceanographic change, contributing to the understanding of biodiversity patterns and adaptive mechanisms in the Indo-West Pacific region.
Dr. Kamal Gosh
Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources, Sherman Lewis School of Agriculture & Applied Sciences, Langston University, Oklahoma, USA
Dr. Kamal Gosh is an internationally recognized aquaculture scientist whose work supports sustainable agriculture, resilient ecosystems, and innovative blue-economy solutions. Based at Langston University, Oklahoma (USA), Dr. Gosh integrates aquaculture, natural resource management, and agroecological innovation to address some of today’s most pressing global challenges in food security and environmental sustainability. His collaborative research spans marine, coastal, and inland systems, linking aquaculture, fisheries, and ecosystem health. Passionate about bridging science, policy, and practice, Dr. Gosh’s work continues to inspire progress toward a more sustainable future.