About
Working towards thriving coasts, seas and coastal communities across the UK.
Recognised as a “30 under 30” global environmental leader by the NAAEE
Winner national Rising Star Awards 2021 – Charity and Not-for-Profit
Emily is a marine and coastal specialist at the forefront of driving positive change for our ocean and all of us that depend on it. She has a strong track-record in the development of pioneering projects that engage people with our ocean and its protection; securing over £5m in funding for inclusive marine and coastal conservation projects in the UK. Emily currently leads the Local Government Association Coastal Special Interest Group and is a Trustee of the UK’s leading marine charity, Marine Conservation Society.
Emily is a co-author of the model #Motion4theOcean – a template motion that enables local government to play its part in ocean recovery – alongside Cllr Dr Pamela Buchan and Nicola Bridge (Ocean Conservation Trust). Emily has personally supported two councils (so far!) in the development of a local Ocean Recovery declaration; both of which were agreed, becoming local policy in January 2022.
Emily is a credible ocean advocate, as comfortable speaking to a school group as to a TV crew or a government Minister. She has appeared on national TV & radio and written for various magazines discussing the issues of the day. Watch her speak at the International Marine Conservation Congress here and on a national Sky News interview here. She is committed to recognising when to use her voice and when to pass the mic.
She shares her adventures on Marine Biology Life.
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Key Achievements & Recent Work
- 2021/22 – Co-authored the model Motion for the Ocean and supported two local authorities (so far) in the development of a local Ocean Recovery Declaration: Falmouth Town Council unanimously supported the motion on 10 January 2022 and South Tyneside Council on 13 January 2022. They follow Plymouth City Council, who were the first to declare an urgent need for ocean recovery in November 2021.
- 2021 Winner – Rising Star Awards – Charity and Not-for-Profit Category for her work for England’s coast and its communities.
- Recognised as one of “30 under 30” global environmental leaders in 2020 by the North American Association for Environment Education. Emily was selected for her work to enable a wider range of people to enjoy and take action to protect our coasts and seas.
n - Developed a £5m programme of marine conservation and education projects, the first of its kind in the UK (2016-2019)
Emily led the programme development process, securing match funding and writing the successful Stage 1 application, securing £250,000 in development funding. She was then appointed as an advisor to the Partnership Board and contributed significantly to the documentation for the full Stage 2 bid. This pioneering scheme was awarded £2.78m funding in March 2020, see here.
~~ - Developed a major new conservation project on the Dee Estuary (2018-2021)
Emily was commissioned to advise on project development and community consultation, and to write the (successful) Stage 1 funding bid. The project was awarded £101,400 development funding in late 2018. Emily was then a professional advisor to the development team and a full application was submitted in May 2021. £540,000 was awarded by the National Lottery Heritage Fund in September 2021. Read the Stage 1 announcement here, including a quote from Emily.
~ - Published new research on UK humpback whales with all data collected by volunteers. This research reported on the first ever photo-ID match of a UK humpback whale to their Arctic feeding grounds and suggests that British seas act as a migratory stopover/alternative destination for migrating humpback whales. Read Emily’s paper, published in Marine Biodiversity Records, here.
~ - Co-led research expeditions to Sicily and the Azores to collect samples for the study of population genetics of Bottlenose Dolphins and Yellowmouth Barracuda.
~ - Led a marine ecology field course in Indonesia (2019)
Emily delivered lectures and led surveys covering the ecology and conservation of coral reefs, mangroves, seagrasses and sea turtles.
~ - Emily has presented her work at the UK’s Coastal Futures Conference, the 5th International Marine Conservation Congress (IMCC5) in Kuching, Sarawak (Borneo) and at the 2018 European Marine Science Educators Association (EMSEA) conference in Newcastle (England).
Emily Cunningham 