Professor in New York for UN Global Marine Assessment

Institute of Environmental and Marine Sciences (IEMS) professor Dr. Hilconida P. Calumpong was the only Filipino at a gathering of experts held May 7 to 9 at the United Nations (UN) Headquarters in New York City.

She was invited to the Group of Experts for the Regular Process of the UN for the First Global Marine Assessment. Dr. Calumpong is one of only 25 experts from 25 countries.

The group will carry out the World Ocean Assessment of the United Nations following an outline that had already been approved by the UN General Assembly. Their task is to help gather and analyze data that would enable the UN to answer the following major questions: What is the overall state of the world's oceans and seas? Are marine ecosystems around the world improving or declining? What benefits do we get from the world's oceans and seas, and how are they distributed? How can we measure the state of the oceans and seas? And what threatens them?

Dr. Calumpong is among the country's foremost marine scientists. She is currently the Graduate Program Coordinator at IEMS, handling courses in coastal resource management, marine biology, and environmental policy and governance, among others.

(Photo shows Dr. Hilconida P. Calumpong, first from right, with the group of experts during their meeting in the DOALOS Conference Room at the United Nations Headquarters in New York.)