We are delighted to announce the induction of three distinguished Fellows: John Keesing, Hongbin Liu, and Peter Thompson. As part of IMBeR’s “wise council”, they will contribute their expertise to support strategic decision-making and strengthen IMBeR’s interdisciplinary approach. As members of IMBeR’s “wise council”, they were invited to assist in producing synthesis products of the IMBeR community’s 10-year efforts and to provide their expertise in supporting strategic planning.
John Keesing, a Senior Principal Research Scientist at CSIRO, specializes in marine biology and ecology, biodiversity conservation, and marine park management. His research focuses on macroalgal blooms, coral reef ecosystems, and invertebrate biology. Recent projects include studying the ecology of mesophotic coral reef habitats at Ningaloo, conducting deep-water surveys of marine parks, and assessing the impacts of illegal fishing on sea cucumbers in northwestern Australia.
Hongbin Liu, Chair Professor of Microbial Oceanography at The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, studies the impacts of climate change and anthropogenic activities on coastal ecosystems, with a focus on microbial food web dynamics and oceanic carbon flux. His lab team explores microbial diversity and its biogeochemical roles, deep-sea microbial ecology, and coastal blue carbon ecosystems that contribute to carbon neutrality.
Peter Thompson has been co-leading the IMBeR Eutrophication Group since 2022. His current scientific passion is exploring phytoplankton ecology using time series data and streamlining international efforts to assess the status and trends of global phytoplankton diversity. Peter has led or participated in SCOR and IOC/UNESCO working groups and was awarded the IOC/UNESCO medal for oceanography in 2019.
We welcome all the new Fellows and look forward to collaborating with them during IMBeR’s strategic phase.