Keynote Speaker on Thursday, December 2, 2021 at 9:00

Charles Birkeland earned his PhD at the University of Washington in 1970 and has been studying the ecology of coral reefs ever since. He was a post-doc at the Smithsonian Tropical research Institute in Panamá 1970-1975. He was a professor of marine biology at the University of Guam Marine Laboratory 1975-2000 and Leader of the Hawaii Cooperative Fisheries Unit at the University of Hawaii 2000-2010. He was a founding member and third president of the International Coral Reef Society 1979-1982. He coauthored the book on Acanthaster planci: Major Management Problem of Coral Reefs and edited Life and Death of Coral Reefs and Coral Reefs in the Anthropocene. He has written dozens of papers on the ecology and management of coral reef ecosystems. He has an extensive knowledge of patterns and drivers of coral reef ecosystems over both ecological and geological timeframes, based on long term monitoring of coral reefs over the last 50 years. He has inspired, mentored and supervised many students studying coral reef ecology, and played a key role in coral reef conservation and management, providing important scientific advice to managers to improve the management of coral reefs and associated fisheries. He was also one of the first to recognize the role that nutrient runoff from islands play in causing the crown-of-thorns starfish outbreaks that severely damage reef communities.

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