Lynda Miller

Lynda Miller is a Director of Vatuvara Private Islands since 2010. Vatuvara Private islands is a premier Fiji resort in Northern Lau that provides an exclusive experience to travelers who are interested in exploring Northern Lau's pristine marine environments. The Northern Group of Lau has been described by Forbes Magazine as "one of the world's most beautiful places". Kaibu Island is where Vatuvara Private Islands Resort is located on an 800-acre site. For more information: https://www.vatuvara.com/.

Katy Miller

​​​​​​​Katy Miller is a Director of the Vatuvara Foundation which was formed in 2016 and registered as a charitable organization under Fiji law. The Vatuvara Foundation is committed to protect and revive oceans in the Northern Lau Group of Fiji through a network of marine protected areas and provide innovative solutions that promote awareness and empower local communities. The Vatuvara Foundation engages in scientific expeditions, initiating educational marine awareness programmes, inspiring young ocean advocates, and building strong partnerships.

Angelique Songco

After serving in the Armed Forces of the Philippines for five years, Angelique Songco worked as a diving professional on liveaboards boats in the Tubbataha Reefs for ten (10) years. She represented a local NGO in the multi-sectoral Tubbataha Protected Area Management Board. In 2001, she headed Tubbataha Management Office and became the first park manager of Tubbataha. She completed her master’s degree in Environment, Development and Policy from the University of Sussex, England. She has been named Hero of the Environment by WWFPhilippines twice.

Insurance to Support the Resilience of Marine Coastal Ecosystems

Healthy coastal ecosystems, such as coral reefs, are natural buffers that provide the first line of defense against extreme weather events. These ecosystems are rapidly declining, however, despite their importance for coastal cities, communities, and infrastructure. Insurance can financially protect and incentivize the maintenance of coastal ecosystems, such as coral reefs.

Santosh Kumar Srirangam

Dr. Santosh received his Ph.D. from Delft University of Technology (TU Delft), Netherlands. His expertise lies in Fluid-structure-interaction (FSI), CFD, Contact & Continuum Mechanics. He authored numerous international journal papers and presented technical papers in various international conferences and workshops. He helped Structural Mechanics group of TU Delft win many research funding proposals and collaborated with many esteemed research groups and universities in the US, UK, Europe. Currently, he’s heading Engineering dept. of HSL Constructor Pte Ltd.

Loke Ming Chou

Dr. CHOU Loke Ming is Emeritus Professor at the National University of Singapore (Department of Biological Sciences). He obtained his PhD in Zoology from the University of Singapore in 1976. His research on coral reef ecology and integrated coastal management covers Southeast Asia. His current research focus is reef restoration, and he is particularly interested in how corals can be re-established in the highly turbid conditions of rapidly developing coastal areas. He is an Honorary Fellow of the Singapore Institute of Biology and a Fellow of the Singapore National Academy of Science.

“Growing” Low Cost Engineered Barrier Reefs for Coastal Protection and Beach Restoration & Erosion Control

Coral reefs protect against natural hazards by reducing wave energy by an average of 97%. Reef crests alone dissipate up to 86% of this energy. Mineral Accretion Technology, which is more than 40 years old, can be used to grow protective barrier reefs using pre-fabricated steel structures and low-voltage electricity (similar to that used for charging mobile phones) to grow CaCO3 (limestone) using minerals dissolved in seawater.