We have a team of visionaries, experts & doers who are driven to help protect the Great Barrier Reef before it’s too late.
jo kelly | Founder & ceo
MBA, Bachelor Environmental Engineering, Grad Cert. Innovation & Sustainability. Myer Innovation Fellow, Nuffield Scholar, AMP Tomorrow Maker, WEF Uplink Top 10 Innovator
Jo Kelly is on a mission to harness the power of seaweed to protect oceans, reduce carbon emissions, create livelihoods in coastal communities and nourish the planet. An industry strategist and impact entrepreneur with over 25 years’ experience in business, Jo is passionate about advancing nature-based solutions to deliver environmental, social and economic outcomes at scale. Jo is Chair of Australian Sustainable Seaweed Alliance, Steering Committee Member of International Safe Seaweed Coalition, Myer Innovation Fellow and AMP Tomorrow Maker. Jo has presented at the UN Oceans Conference, European Commission’s Algae Summit, the Economist’s Ocean Summit and Monaco Ocean Week.
Nick KELLY | General Manager Assets & Operations
CPEng, RPEQ, Bachelor Environmental Engineering, Grad Cert Law, Diploma Positive Psychology, and Diploma Project Management
Nick has 20 years experience as an Environmental Engineer and infrastructure project leader in both Australia and the UK. Nick has extensive experience leading multidisciplinary teams on significant civil and maritime infrastructure projects. Nick is passionate about the environment and believes that ocean farming seaweed is a sustainable industry for the future. Nick is a Registered Professional Engineer of Queensland and has been a Chartered Engineer with Engineers Australia for over 15 years. Nick’s engineering and project management skills and experience provide the Australia Seaweed Institute an advantage in dealing with engineering projects and complexity.
Dr Guillermo Diaz-Pulido | CSO
Tropical seaweed expert with a PhD in marine botany and ecology, Guillermo is the Head of Coral Reef and Algae Research lab and Associate Professor at Griffith University. He is part of the Centre of Excellence for Coral Reef Studies.
Guillermo is passionate biological, physiological, ecological, biogeochemical & conservation questions related to tropical marine algae & coral reefs. His work aims to understand the nature & drivers of ecological dynamics between algae and corals, the roles of algae in coral reefs, and how human activities affect the algae and their interactions with corals.
Phil Quinn | CFO
Phil has nearly 30 years experience as Chief Financial Officer for a variety of business types including manufacturing, wholesaling, distribution, insurance, tourism, hospitality and mining services. He brings specific experience in both natural health products and Queensland’s marine tourism to Australian Seaweed Institute.
He has a proven ability as a CFO to successfully manage the financial direction of private companies covering all aspects of a company's growth up to ASX listing or Trade Sale.
MADELEINE PIERCE | MARKETING
Madeleine is an award-winning conservation-focused designer. She has over 15 years experience in leading design, marketing, digital transformation and product development projects.
She routinely lends her expertise to global marine conservation organisations, and in her spare time produces the Marine Megafauna Foundation’s Ocean Giants Magazine with her shark biologist husband, Dr Simon J Pierce.
Research Team
Dr. Emma Jackson | Research Director
My research expertise are in the areas of seagrass landscape and restoration ecology, working with nature, impacts on marine species, coastal marine habitats and ecosystem health indicators. My research is driven by the idea that coastal development is an ever-increasing human activity, but that there are ways in which this development can work with nature rather than against it to maintain ecosystem health, in turn supporting our health and wellbeing as humans. Currently, I lead a research program on the construction of a science-based framework for seagrass restoration in Queensland, but my past and present research areas include marine conservation management, ecosystem services, marine ecology, and marine angiosperms.
Dr. ANDREW IRVING | SEAWEED RESEARCHER
Andrew's research interests primarily focus on the ecology of marine habitats, particularly marine plants such as seagrass meadows, salt marshes, and kelp forests. How such habitats are maintained, how humans disrupt them, how they might recover naturally, and what humans can do to facilitate their recovery (e.g. restoration) are all central themes to his research.
Dr. ANGELA CAPPER | SEAWEED RESEARCHER
I have twenty years’ experience working in the field of ecotoxicology with a strong focus on anthropogenic pollutants and microalgal toxins and their impact upon ecosystems and potential risk to human health. I have a strong understanding of contaminants and their fate in environment and various biological matrices. My current research focuses broadly on seafood contamination (microplastics, harmful algal bloom toxins, ciguatera fish poisoning, aquaculture therapeutants) and understanding the trophic dynamics associated with toxin transfer. I have also worked with heavy metals, antibiotics and mosquitocides.
Emma theobald phd student
Emma is leading cultivation trials research into the nursery stages of two target species of seaweeds for the Seaweed Biofilters solution.
Emma has a background in aquaculture, marine science and sustainable food production systems.
