The European Marine Board Young Ambassador Programme, which was launched in March 2019, currently has four active Young Ambassadors. The first two Ambassadors started in April 2019, and after a positive evaluation by the EMB Board has continue on a similar basis, with two new Ambassadors joining every year.
The Ambassadors are selected from an open call of applications. The EMB Young Ambassadors engage with EMB for a two-year period, and then join the EMB Young Ambassadors Alumni.
Read all about their activities and events where you might run into them here.
EMB Young Ambassadors 2026-2028
Alessia Finini
EMB Young Ambassador 2026-2028
Alessia is a PhD candidate at the Benthic Ecology Laboratory of the University of Genoa, Italy, part of the EMB Member Organisation Italian CoNISMa University Consortium. Her research focuses on the role and value of Mediterranean seaweeds in restorative and regenerative aquaculture. She investigates macroalgal biodiversity and ecology, as well as the optimisation of growth conditions for key species, including habitat-forming brown algae and species with high biotechnological potential. With a strong interest in nature-based solutions and the blue economy, Alessia aims to bridge science, policy and society, while promoting ocean literacy through engaging science communication. You can find her on Instagram, LinkedIn and ResearchGate.
Bram Cuyx
EMB Young Ambassador 2026-2028
Bram is a researcher at the Marine Observation Center at the Flanders Marine Institute and the KU Leuven. He graduated with a MSc from the KU Leuven in electronics engineering, focusing on acoustic signal processing. After working on the Marine SoundLib, building an open library of sound events and long-term sound pressure level trends, he started a PhD project. Now, he’s studying the effects of urbanisation in marine areas on soundscape dynamics. Assessing how human introduced changes during windfarm construction affect local ecosystems using passive acoustic monitoring. By increasing the understanding into the effect of environmental changes, he hopes to help in supplying evidence and insights for a more sustainable marine spatial plan. You can find him on LinkedIn and follow his fieldwork updates on Instagram.
EMB Young Ambassadors 2025-2027
Anne Bødal
EMB Young Ambassador 2025-2027
Anne is a PhD candidate in Science and Technology Studies at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, Norway. Before starting her PhD, Anne worked for three years at SINTEF Ocean, a member of the European Marine Board, in the Department of Climate and Environment. In her doctoral research, Anne investigates the design of stakeholder engagement processes within marine and coastal environments. Her research is affiliated with two European Union-funded projects: CLIMAREST and TRANSEATION. You can find her on LinkedIn.
Jorge Juan Santos Bruna
EMB Young Ambassador 2025-2027
Jorge began his research career with a BSc in Marine Sciences from the University of Alicante, focusing on meteorological modelling. He later specialised in Oceanography with an MSc from the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, where he developed a strong interest in plankton and biogeochemical cycles, contributing to ocean-based carbon sequestration projects (OceanNETs). Through a research fellowship, he joined the Plankton Ecology and Environmental Challenges Group at the Spanish Institute of Oceanography (IEO-CSIC), an EMB Member Organisation , working on marine outreach ( LifeWatch Alborán ) and monitoring projects (BELICH). Currently, supported by an Andalusian Government grant, he is pursuing a PhD with this group on plankton viral metabolic genes and their role in marine trophic dynamics. You can find him on ResearchGate and Twitter .