Keynote Speakers & Plenary Sessions

Keynote Speaker—Francesca Santoro

Francesca Santoro works for the Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC) of UNESCO where she is in charge of the ocean literacy programme, as well as of the coordination of the Ocean Literacy With All (OLWA) programme of the Ocean Decade.

Francesca holds a PhD in analysis and governance for sustainable development from the School for Advanced Studies in Venice (SSAV) with specialization in marine environmental sciences, marine governance, science education and communication. Francesca joined UNESCO in 2011, and before she worked as lecturer for the University Ca' Foscari of Venice. She worked as well for several international research centers such as the Euro-Mediterranean Centre for Climate Change, the International Marine Centre, the National Oceanography Centre, and the Joint Research Centre.

The talk will discuss the ocean literacy role in the context of the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development, focussing on what are the identified priority areas, as well as on the programmes and projects already endorsed as part of the Ocean Decade.

A way forward, drawing on the conclusions of the second UN Ocean Conference, will be presented as well.

Keynote Speaker—Maynard Okereke

Maynard Okereke, better known as the Hip Hop M.D., graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in Civil Engineering. He is an award winning Science Communicator, having received both the Asteroid Award for "Best Streaming Content" and the People of Change Award for his community outreach efforts. His passion for science and entertainment, along with his curiosity for new innovation has taken him through an incredible life journey.

Noticing a lack of minority involvement in the S.T.E.M. fields, he created Hip Hop Science with the goal of encouraging minorities and youth to pursue more advanced career paths. His background in engineering, acting, business, and credible work within the music industry as an artist, make him uniquely qualified to engage on a wide variety of topics from an entertaining perspective. This is highly reflected in his weekly vlogs and daily social media posts which provide both humorous and informative #SciComm content.

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