Nick Hardman-Mountford

Nick is an ocean leader, policy specialist, marine scientist and former diplomat who has worked at the interface of ocean, climate and nature for more than two decades. He is Director of Development at Nekton, supporting the rapid acceleration of marine species discovery through the Ocean Census to close the vast data gap needed to underpin global ocean protection efforts – to date, only around 10% of marine life has been discovered.

Ocean governance & multilateral diplomacy Nick was previously Head of Oceans and Natural Resources at the Commonwealth Secretariat, where he led a multidisciplinary team of legal, economic, scientific and policy advisers supporting more than 30 Commonwealth governments on ocean governance, blue economy, maritime law and natural resources reform. He conceived and delivered three flagship multilateral initiatives: the Commonwealth Blue Charter (56 countries, 10 Action Groups), the Apia Commonwealth Ocean Declaration – the largest ever Commonwealth marine protection agreement – and the Commonwealth Sustainable Energy Transition Agenda.

Ocean science and climate leadership Nick’s research has spanned the Atlantic, Indian, Pacific, Arctic and Southern Oceans addressing climate, carbon cycling, conservation, energy and food security challenges. As Global Senior Director at Conservation International, Nick led work on blue carbon and coastal adaptation science, policy and finance across Asia, the Pacific, Africa and Latin America. Prior senior roles include Principal Marine Scientist and Group Leader at Australia’s national research agency, CSIRO; Director of a UK Centre of Excellence in Earth Observation (CASIX) at Plymouth Marine Laboratory; and Board Director for Oceans at the UK National Centre for Earth Observation.

Thought leadership & communications Nick is an experienced senior spokesperson and thought leader, with a track record of invited speaking at high-level fora including UNFCCC and CBD COPs, the UN Ocean Conference, G20, Davos and the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. He has authored op-eds and policy-facing content for governments, private sector and public audiences, and has published more than 150 scientific papers, book chapters and commissioned reports.

Recognition, Service & Advisory Nick is a Fellow of the Marine Biological Association of the UK (a Learned Royal Society) and holds an Adjunct Honorary Fellowship at the University of Western Australia. He has held a range of advisory roles including for Outrigger Impact (a blue economy impact investment fund), the X-Prize, the Mangrove Breakthrough’s Finance Working Group, various space agencies and scientific bodies and as a nominator and Global Alliance Partner for The Earthshot Prize.