Joëlle Richard is a capacity building officer at the University of Brest. She obtained her PhD in marine benthic ecology in collaboration between the University of Brest and the University of Geneva. She was co-PI on two Arctic projects, BB Polar (Pan-Arctic Bivalves as Polar Bioarchives) and ECOTAB (Effect of climate change on benthos in the Arctic). After three years as Assistant Professor in marine ecology at the Florida Gulf Coast University, she now develops capacity building programme linked to ocean governance, conservation and MPA management within the joint research unit AMURE, a multidisciplinary research and training center in social and human sciences applied to the sea. AMURE is specialized in the study of public policies and institutions for management and development of coastal and maritime activities and for protection of marine and coastal ecosystems.

Matthias Haeckel's marine research work comprises the understanding of early diagenetic processes in the marine environment with a focus on the global carbon cycle, cold vent & gas hydrate systems, the determination of fluid & gas sources, and the assessment of the response of the marine environment to anthropogenic activities, such as deep-sea mining, subseafloor CO2 storage, gas hydrate exploitation, oil & gas production, and pollution (e.g., plastic debris).
This also includes transfer of the scientific results into information products for policymakers, regulators, NGOs, industry and other interested stakeholders as well as the general public. Dr. Haeckel has worked on impacts from deep-sea mining for 25 years and, since 2015, is the coordinator of the European JPI Oceans Project 'MiningImpact' with 30 partners, including the International Seabed Authority.