Meriwether Wilson

Dr. Wilson is a Reader in Marine Science and Policy at the University of Edinburgh focusing on the science-policy-society intersections of transboundary marine ecosystems, in particular biodiversity, ocean governance and climate adaptation for small island developing states (SIDS) and large-ocean island nations.  She is in the School of GeoSciences, with the Global Change Research Institute/Oceans Research Group. Her current research explores emerging challenges in coastal-marine governance and marine ecology regarding marine conservation in nearshore and offshore marine areas.  This research builds upon two decades of experience with international organizations (World Bank, UNESCO, UNDP, IUCN, NOAA) on the establishing marine protected areas globally across diverse ecological scales, cultures and economies, including project management and field experience across the Pacific (Galapagos, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia), and a decade of working with coastal nations of the Red and Black Seas.

Dr. Wilson has a decade of research and teaching experience with the University of Washington and University of Edinburgh.  At Edinburgh, since 2020, she was the co-founder and continues to serve as co-Director of the Edinburgh Ocean Leaders Programme (https://oceanleaders.org).  In 2013 she founded the interdisciplinary "MSc in Marine Systems and Policies" (2013-2018), and lectures on courses focusing on marine policy, ecology conservation, blue growth and field-based learning (e.g. Maldives, Jamaica). She has supervised over 100 marine focused MSc dissertations, with academic, NGO, government and industry partners, as well as over six PhD students working on marine topics, e.g. marine biosecurity invasive species,  coastal managed realignment; and marine conservation and climate horizons, locally managed marine areas, impacts of nitrogen on reefs.

Dr Wilson has publications on across marine science to policy topics in leading journals, ranging from assessing coastal climatic risks and security, to marine mammal codes of practice and is Principal Investigator (PI) and Co-Investigator (CI) on various sectors, disciplines and scales of research grants:

• Foundation Prince Albert II de Monaco (2020-2023, Co-PI): OCEAN LEADERS: Accelerating the reach and influence of global young professionals working on solutions for the oceans and society.  https://oceanleaders.org

• Foundation Prince Albert II de Monaco (2018-2019, PI): Community Based Aquaculture as a Catalyst for Locally Managed Marine Areas in Madagascar (UoE in partnership with NGO Blue Ventures).  https://www.ed.ac.uk/geosciences/advancement/philanthropy/research/madagascar-aquaculture

• European Union (EU) FP7 Consortium Grant (2014-2017, CoI): OPERAS - Operationalizing Ecosystem Services, focusing on coastal marine ecosystem services (http://operas-project.eu)

• NERC/ESPA (2015-2018, CoI): Marine Benefits - Sharing the benefits of sustainable fisheries: from global to local legal approaches to marine ecosystem services for poverty alleviation. 

 Other activities include:

• IPBES (2017) Contributing Author on the IPBES- 5 Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform (Contributions on the Regional  Assessment Europe and Central Asia)
• IPCC, 2014 - Contributing Author on European coastal and marine ecosystems for the IPCC AR5, Working Group II report. 
• Member of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas since 1995.

Recent invited talks and international workshops include:  Monaco Blue Initiative Conferences (MBI 2020, 2019, 2018) (see https://www.monacoblueinitiative.org ) UK JNCC Workshop Sustainability Partnerships in the South Atlantic, EU Workshop on Marine  Ecosystem Services; EU/IUCN Gudadeloupe Conference on Biodiversity Climate Change for EU Overseas territories and regions.

In this video Meriwether describes how as urbanization and energy push infrastructure into ever expanding new marine realms, opportunities exist to create “hybrid” coastal and marine habitats that could potentially generate ecologically positive ecosystem trajectories over time.