Mark J. Spalding
(FY11–Current)
Mark J. Spalding is serving on the Sargasso Sea Commission. He is a member of the Ocean Studies Board of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. He is a member of the Pool of Experts for the UN World Ocean Assessment, and a Senior Fellow at the Center for the Blue Economy, at the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, and is a member of the Steering Committee of the Western Hemisphere Migratory Species Initiative. Mark is an active participant in the marine working group, Ocean Acidification collaborative, Baja California group, and coral reef group of the funders’ organization, the Consultative Group on Biological Diversity. He serves as an advisor Eco-Allianza and Surfrider international and on the International Bering Sea Forum. He is the former chair of the Council of the National Whale Conservation Fund. He has consulted for the Alaska Conservation Foundation, San Diego Foundation, the International Community Foundation, the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, Fundación La Puerta, and a number of family foundations. He designed and managed the Orca Fund. He has served as a member of the Environmental Grants Advisory Committee of FINCOMUN (Tijuana, Mexico’s Community Foundation). In addition, he serves as the advisor to the Rockefeller Climate Solutions Strategy and the Credit Suisse Rockefeller Ocean Engagement Strategy (unprecedented ocean-centric investment funds).
Posts by Mark J. Spalding
Whale Strandings and the Need for Long-Term Solutions
Mark J. Spalding discusses recent whale strandings and the need to invest in ensuring all human activities stop threatening ocean life.
Looking Back to Move Forward: 2022 UN Ocean Conference
After the 2022 UN Ocean Conference, we hope to see continued progress toward ensuring the voices of those with the power to make change, and those who are most affected by climate change and ocean destruction, are heard.
Investment Opportunities in the Blue Economy
In conjunction with World Ocean Day, Mark J. Spalding guest authored for Rockefeller Asset Management’s latest edition of their “Engaging Ideas” commentary series.
The Humanitarian Response is the Healthy Ocean Response
Acting to address climate change and the illegal war of conquest by Russia against the Ukraine
Revisiting the Beauty, Heritage, and Community of Loreto
Activities around Keep Loreto Magical continue to thrive, with ever more opportunities to help the community and its natural resources.
The Ocean Foundation’s statement on the 6th IPCC Report
The 6th IPCC Report was released with some fanfare on August 6th — confirming what we know, and yet offering some hope if we are willing to act locally, regionally and globally.
Steps to Sustainable Shipping
As ocean-based trade increases, so too does its environmental footprint. We need to move toward more sustainable transportation to protect the marine environment.
The Ocean Sent Up Smoke Signals Last Week. Let’s Listen.
On July 2, a gas leak in the Gulf of Mexico led to a fire in the ocean, a reminder of how delicate our ecosystem is. To keep the sea healthy, we need to listen to its calls.
Key Ocean Takeaways of Rockefeller Asset Management’s Sustainable Investing Annual Report
On April 20, Rockefeller Asset Management (RAM) released their 2020 Sustainable Investing Annual Report detailing their sustainable investing objectives. View some key takeaways.
Our Comments on the Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad
In response to the recent Executive Order on Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, NOAA has been instructed to collect recommendations on how to make fisheries and protected resources more resilient to climate change. We at The Ocean Foundation welcome the opportunity to respond.
Marine Science is Real (Part Two of Two)
The ocean covers more than 71% of the planet, and you don’t have to dig very far to find out just how much we haven’t explored, don’t understand, and need to know to improve the human relationship with our planet’s life support system.
Marine Science is Real (Part One of Two)
Marine science is real, and we have to back it with action. That means training new scientists, enabling scientists to participate in scientific and other knowledge sharing no matter where they live and work, and using the data and conclusions to inform policies that protect and support all ocean life.
World Women’s Day
Women have played leading roles in conservation and stewardship of our natural heritage for more than a century—and in marine conservation, we have been blessed over the decades with their leadership and vision.
The Ocean Climate Nexus
Today the United States is rejoining the Paris Agreement, the global commitment to combat climate change through national and cooperative international actions. That will leave only seven nations of 197 …
The 2020 Election and the Ocean
The results of our national election feel half good—no matter who your candidate(s) are, the tight outcomes forecast difficulties in meeting the challenges of our times. Yet, I believe that …
Standing In Solidarity: A Universal Call to Action
We stand in solidarity with the black community as there is no place or room for hatred or bigotry across our ocean community.
Rebuilding for Mother Ocean…
This is a time for unity and caring for others. It is also a time to anticipate what challenges the future holds, and to plan ahead for the recovery after the pandemic.
Our Response to COVID-19
As the disruptions caused by the response to COVID 19 continue, communities are struggling at almost every level even as acts of kindness and support offer comfort and humor.
Invest in a Healthy Coastal Ecosystem
Invest in a healthy coastal ecosystem, it will enhance human well-being. And, it will pay us back many times over.
Cleaner Air, Cleaner Ocean
The benefits to the ocean of pollution prevention are incalculable—just like our benefits from the ocean.
The New Blue Economy: Taking care of the ocean to sustain us
[Adapted from a keynote given for “Oceans of Knowledge” at the Royal Institution hosted by the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science & Technology on November 20, 2019] Investment in and …
Keynote at the Forum on Ocean, Seas, and Opportunities for Sustainable Development
KeynoteWednesday, 9 October 2019 Honorable Senators and distinguished guests.My name is Mark Spalding, and I am the President of The Ocean Foundation, and of the A.C. Fundación Mexicana para el Océano This is my 30th year of …
TOF calls for National Academies to Explore Redesigning Plastics
As part of The Ocean Foundation’s Redesigning Plastics Initiative, on 15 July 2019, we requested a scoping meeting from the key boards of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and …
Africa Blue Economy Forum
Every time I am invited to speak, I have the opportunity to revisit my thinking about an aspect of improving the human relationship with the ocean. Likewise, as I confer …
The Vaquita
I have been afraid of this day for a long time, the “lessons learned” postmortem panel: “Conservation, controversy and courage in the Upper Gulf of California: fighting the vaquita vortex” …
Effectively Developing Marine Protected Areas
10th Monaco Blue Initiative Oceanographic Museum of Monaco 25 March 2019 Session #1 How can we – collectively – continue developing MPAs whilst ensuring their efficiency? Remarks by Mark J. …
The Green New Deal and the [New] Blue Economy
All of the talk about the “Green New Deal” and what that means, what it encompasses, and what it would take to achieve its vision, even if the specific strategies …
Complementarity with existing Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction Institutions
Complementarity with existing Areas Beyond National Jurisdiction Institutions A panel on The BBNJ Process George Washington University 10 November 2018 The Ocean Foundation is very interested in the conservation of the …
Committing to a Better Future
Gathering to talk about ocean issues, climate change, and other challenges to our collective well-being is important—face to face workshops and conferences bolster collaboration and foster innovation—especially when the purpose …
Recovery and Restoration after Hurricane Maria
Seventeen named storms struck the greater Caribbean region in 2017—wreaking havoc on human communities and natural resources alike. So many families lost loved ones, their livelihoods, and their homes—it is …
Our Ocean and the Future of Plastic
In July, I spent four days at The Klosters Forum, an intimate small-town setting in the Swiss Alps that fosters more innovative collaborations by bringing together disruptive and inspirational minds …
Science Diplomacy and our Shared Legacy
Three nations share the Gulf of Mexico abundant resources—Cuba, Mexico, and the United States. It is our shared heritage and our shared responsibility because it is also our shared legacy …
A Plastic Ocean
On January 21, TOF Board members Joshua Ginsberg, Angel Braestrup, and I participated in a Salisbury Forum event focused on plastic waste in the ocean. The event began with the …
Offshore Drilling Action
My late grandmother was a big believer in the old adage “Don’t put all your eggs in one basket.” She knew that relying on one skill or one industry or …
MMPA and Dire Harm
For most of the past two and a half decades, I have dedicated my energy to the ocean, to the life within, and to the many people who also dedicate …
My Year of Islands
Dear Friend of the Ocean, For me, 2017 was the year of the island, and thus of expanded horizons. The year’s site visits, workshops and conferences took me to islands …
It’s Not Just the Big Ones
For those who care about our ocean, the life within, and the human communities that depend on a healthy ocean— the specter of expanding industrial use of the ocean threatens …
In Memory of a True Ocean Hero
Dear TOF Community, Marine Scientist, Michelle Ridgway was one of the first people I met when I began working in Alaska nearly 20 years ago. In our most recent work …
Making a Splash in 2017
A LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear friends of the ocean and other members of The Ocean Foundation Community, I am pleased to present our Annual Report for Fiscal Year 2017 …
Climate Resilience and The Future
Climate Resilience and The Future @COP23 #oceanforclimate #becausetheocean In the wake of the major Atlantic hurricanes and the resulting damage to human and marine communities alike, The Ocean Foundation …
A Public Trust, A Pledge to Future Americans
In a memo to President Trump, Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke has proposed shrinking six of our national monuments, and making management changes for four national monuments. Three of …
Equity, Inclusion, and The Ocean Foundation Community
Hurricane Harvey, as with other disasters, has demonstrated once again that communities gather and help each other when the need arises. Further, we saw those leaders who failed to help …
#SaveOurOcean
The UN SDG14 Ocean Conference: the first UN conference of its kind on the ocean. June 8 is World Oceans Day, as designated by the United Nations, and we like …
Monitoring the Aftermath:
Seven years ago, we mourned the deaths of the 11 who died in the Deepwater Horizon explosion, and watched in growing horror as a torrent of oil poured forth from …
What Mrs. Vaughan Teaches Us (and can teach U.S.)
Perhaps you have been to see the movie Hidden Figures. Perhaps you were inspired by its depiction of three black women succeeding because of their extraordinary ability in the context …
Costa Rica BBNJ Workshop
I spent the 8th and 9th of March in Puntarenas, Costa Rica for a Central American workshop to develop capacity for foreign ministries engaged in responding to the UN General …
The Association of Southeast Asian Nations’ Role in Ocean Issues
On January 28, I arrived in Manila, the capital of the Philippines, one of the 16 cities that make up “Metro Manila,” the most densely populated urban area in the …
Go Big or Go Home
International agreements value efforts to protect the health and wellbeing of all life on earth—from human rights to endangered species—the nations of the world have come together to figure out …
Blue Tech in San Diego
This past week I attended the 8th annual BlueTech & Blue Economy Summit and Tech Expo in San Diego, which is hosted by The Maritime Alliance (TMA). And, on Friday …
Arctic Ocean Acidification Workshop
In September 2016, the biggest cruise ship to ever make the Northwest Passage through the Arctic reached New York safely after 32 days, millions of dollars in preparations, and a …
Stories of the Whale
The ocean is an opaque place in that there is still so much to learn about it. The life patterns of the great whales are also opaque—it is amazing what …
Corals Need Relief
Coral reefs can handle a lot of chronic and acute harms, until they can’t. Once a reef tract crosses the threshold from a coral-dominated system to a micro-algae dominated system …
Creating the Network to Forecast Ocean Acidification
Following the Ocean in a High CO2 World conference in Tasmania at the very beginning of May, we held the third science workshop for the Global Ocean Acidification Observing Network …
The Ocean is Suffering from Hypercapnia
I spent the beginning of May in Van Diemen’s Land, a penal colony established by Great Britain in 1803. Today, it is known as Tasmania, one of the six original …
How many records will we break?
“I’ve never seen it like this before.” That is what I have heard over and over as I traveled to different regions in the past couple of weeks—in La Jolla …
Keep Loreto Magical
Greetings from Loreto International Airport where I am waiting to catch my plane back to LAX after a very busy week. It is always nice to be back in …
Save the Vaquita
Efforts taken to date by Mexico, the United States, and the global community have been helpful, but have not been sufficient to save the vaquita from extinction. Conserving the species …
Vaquita To Go Extinct for Consumer Interests
On February 2nd, we at The Ocean Foundation posted a blog about status of the efforts to protect the endangered Vaquita porpoise in the Upper Gulf of California in Mexico. In …
Losing hope. Losing the Vaquita
By Mark J. Spalding, President Groundhog Day All Over Again This weekend, I heard that the Vaquita Porpoise is endangered, in crisis, and in desperate need of immediate protection. Unfortunately, …
