Mark, Board Chair
Board of Directors

Mark Spalding

Chair

(FY11–Current)

Mark J. Spalding is serving on the Sargasso Sea Commission. He is a member of the Ocean Studies Board of the 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). Mark concurrently serves as the CEO and President of SeaWeb.

Mark, who has been practicing law and acting as a policy consultant for 31 years, was the chair of the environmental law section of the California State Bar Association from 1998-1999. From 1994 to 2003 Mark was the Director of the Environmental Law and Civil Society Program, and Editor of the Journal of Environment and Development, at the Graduate School of International Relations & Pacific Studies (IR/PS), University of California at San Diego. In addition to lecturing at IR/PS, Mark has taught at Scripps Institution of Oceanography, UCSD’s Muir College, UC Berkeley’s Goldman School of Public Policy, and University of San Diego’s School of Law. Mark helped design some of the most significant ocean conservation campaigns in recent years. He is an experienced and successful facilitator at the international level. He brings his extensive experience with the legal and policy aspects of ocean conservation to the Foundation’s grantmaking strategy and evaluation process. He holds a B.A. in history with Honors from Claremont McKenna College, a J.D. from Loyola Law School, and a Master in Pacific International Affairs (MPIA) from IR/PS.

Read More

Elkhorn Coral in Cuba

The Ocean Foundation and University of Havana’s Marine Research Center: 21 Years of Science, Discovery, and Friendship

This week The Ocean Foundation attended the 50th Anniversary Celebration of the University of Havana’s Centro de Investigaciones Marinas where TOF was recognized for its 21 years of collaboration with CIM on marine science in Cuba.

REV Ocean signing
,

The Ocean Foundation and REV Ocean Partner to Scale Ocean Solutions

REV Ocean will provide a unique opportunity for researchers on board the 2021 maiden voyage with the support of The Ocean Foundation’s regional grant making efforts to connect donors with local science and conservation projects.

Signing the Climate Strong Islands Declaration
, ,

The Climate Strong Islands Declaration

Today, The Ocean Foundation is proud to stand with island communities on their path for self-determination, climate resilience and local solutions.