We are delighted to welcome Prof. Jacob Carstensen as IMBeR’s National Contact for Denmark, Prof. Rubén Escribano as the National Contact for Chile, and Prof. Sheikh Aftab Uddin as the National Contact for Bangladesh.
Jacob Carstensen National Contact for Denmark
Prof. Jacob Carstensen is based at the Department of Ecoscience, Aarhus University, Denmark, and has worked in the field of marine ecology for almost three decades, with a particular focus on biogeochemistry in coastal ecosystems. With an academic background in mathematics and statistics, his research has centered on analyzing long-term monitoring data on water quality from around the world, which has provided profound insights into the functioning and diversity of coastal ecosystems. His main interests lie in understanding long-term changes in marine ecosystems in response to climate change, eutrophication, physical disturbance, and food-web alterations. Much of his research has focused on eutrophication and its adverse ecological consequences, including algal blooms, loss of benthic vegetation, and hypoxia. Beyond his scientific contributions, Professor Carstensen has been actively engaged in environmental policy in the Baltic Sea area at both national and regional levels, through the development of ecological indicators and integrated assessment systems, and by providing recommendations to agencies and regional sea conventions for nutrient management. His research experience aligns closely with the objectives of IMBeR, and since January 2025, he has been appointed as a member of the IMBeR Scientific Steering Committee and served as a keynote speaker at the IMBeR Synthesis and Future Planning Conference (FO3).
Rubén Escribano National Contact for Chile
Prof. Rubén Escribano is a biological oceanographer at the Department of Oceanography, University of Concepción, Chile. His research focuses on plankton ecology and biodiversity in the Southeast Pacific Ocean, with a strong commitment to international collaboration and participation in global scientific programs. He has previously served on the Scientific Steering Committees of both GLOBEC and IMBeR. Born in Los Ángeles in southern Chile, he completed his undergraduate studies in Marine Biology at the University of Concepción in 1982. From 1982 to 1986, he worked on zooplankton taxonomy and distribution at the Marine Biology Station in Dichato, before moving to Dartmouth, Canada, for training in biological oceanography at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography. In the same year, he entered the PhD program in Biological Oceanography at Dalhousie University, Halifax, completing his doctorate in 1991. He then undertook a postdoctoral fellowship at the OPEN Project funded by the National Research Council of Canada (1991–1992), before returning to Chile to join the Universidad de Antofagasta as an assistant professor, where he worked for a decade on zooplankton ecology in the upwelling system, with emphasis on planktonic copepods. In 2002 he was appointed Associate Professor at the University of Concepción, where he co-founded the COPAS Center. He became full professor in 2011 and, in 2013, assumed the role of Deputy Director and Principal Investigator of the Millennium Institute of Oceanography. Professor Escribano has thus developed a distinguished academic career spanning national and international leadership, institution building, and pioneering research in marine plankton ecology.
Sheikh Aftab Uddin National Contact for Bangladesh
Prof. Sheikh Aftab Uddin is based at the Institute of Marine Sciences, University of Chittagong, Bangladesh, where he has more than 20 years of research and teaching experience in coastal ecology, marine biodiversity, blue carbon ecosystems, and sustainable aquaculture. His work has involved both nationally funded projects and international collaborations, addressing coastal vulnerability, carbon sequestration, and marine resource governance, while also contributing to capacity-building, policy discussions, and academic exchange, particularly with institutions in Europe and China. He earned his PhD in Marine Science from the University of Chittagong in 2012, and has undertaken specialized training in biotechnology, shrimp pathology, and aquaculture in China, the USA, and Malaysia. His expertise spans marine biotechnology, marine biogeochemistry, bioremediation, mariculture, seafood processing, aquatic animal health management, and the development of immunoprophylactic agents and probiotics. Professor Uddin has presented his research at numerous international symposia and seminars held in China, France, the USA, Iran, Malaysia, Indonesia, Vietnam, and India. He has secured competitive research funding from a wide range of sources, including the Ministry of Fisheries and Livestock (GoB), the Ministry of Science and Technology (GoB), the State Key Laboratory of Estuarine and Coastal Research (China), the Shanghai government, and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). He has authored more than 60 peer-reviewed publications in national and international journals, as well as three books on marine sciences. In recognition of his achievements, he was awarded the University Grants Commission (UGC) Gold Medal in Life Sciences in 2017. He currently serves as a visiting research scholar at East China Normal University, Shanghai, and is an active member of the Bangladesh Marine Sciences Association, the World Aquaculture Society (WAS), the International Joint Laboratory on Estuaries and Coasts (IJLEC), and is a Life Member of the Society for Coastal Aquaculture and Fisheries (SCAFi).
(In alphabetical order of last names)
More information about the National Contacts is available here.