1 min read
Dec 6, 2021
First strategic advisor will build international partnerships to protect our oceans from plastic pollution
December 7, 2021: VICTORIA, BC - Ocean Diagnostics Inc. (ODI) announced today that it has hired Dr. Tom Okey as a strategic advisor. Dr. Okey is an ocean conservation leader who has successfully created and led regional and international initiatives to understand, improve capacity, and plan for climate change impacts and other human stressors and pressures. He has shaped many areas of ocean conservation science from marine protected areas and ecosystem-based fisheries management to oil spill and climate change impacts.
“Dr. Okey will be instrumental in developing international collaborations to diagnose the health of our oceans from plastic pollution to biodiversity loss, which are some of the greatest environmental challenges our planet faces,” says chief executive officer, Dean Wenham.
Dr. Okey is a Pew Fellow in Marine Conservation, a COMPASS Leader for Sea Change, National Geographic Explorer, adjunct associate professor at the University of Victoria, Associate Faculty member of Royal Roads University, owner of Ocean Integrity Research and Director and First Nations Coordinator of the Broughton Aquaculture Transition Initiative. He obtained his PhD from the University of British Columbia studying alternate stable states in marine ecosystems, his MSc in Marine Science from Moss Landing Marine Laboratories, and his BSc in Environmental Studies/Biology from St. Lawrence University.
“I believe in technology-based solutions to global challenges,” states Okey. “ODI has developed breakthrough technologies to understand ocean health. Its unique partnership-based model provides great opportunities for a broad range of partners and communities to assess and restore ocean health.”
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About Ocean Diagnostics
Founded in 2018, Ocean Diagnostics Inc. is a Victoria-based environmental impact company that works with government, academia, environmental firms, non-profits and global citizens to diagnose the environmental, health and economic threats of microplastic pollution and biodiversity loss. Through innovative technologies, cutting-edge laboratory capabilities and collaborative partnerships we provide the scientific data needed to develop and implement policy to protect our planet.