Alison Baker is co-founder and Managing Director of Eco Cascade. Alison has a business background in sustainable fashion and law, and before moving to the Highlands ran a campaign to reduce plastic pollution in rivers. In 2022 Alison co-founded Eco Cascade, a Community Interest Company formed to support and grow the emerging seaweed cultivation industry in the west coast of Scotland. With the support of Marine Fund Scotland infrastructure funding, Eco Cascade opened its seaweed processing facility in April 2023 - in time for the Spring seaweed harvest - and provides washing, chopping and drying services for the industry.

Rhianna is a leading voice in the UK seaweed sector, recently appointed CEO of the Scottish Seaweed Industry Association. With a background as a researcher, educator, and award-winning industry advocate—recipient of Aquaculture UK’s Rising Star Award—she brings deep expertise and unwavering passion to her role.

Melanie Siggs has worked in global strategic roles for both commercial and NGO organisations across the food systems and timber sectors. She has specialised in fisheries and aquaculture for nearly 20 years.
Melanie is a frequent speaker on sustainable seafood and a regular facilitator for UN FAO, The High Level Panel for a Sustainable Ocean Economy, OECD, World Economic Forum and The Economist.
She is a Director of the Global Seafood Alliance, Chair of Fisheries Innovation & Sustainability, a non-Executive Director of CEFAS, and Ambassador to the Iceland Ocean Cluster. Previously Melanie was a Project Advisor to the World Economic Forum’s Ocean Program for nearly 8 years and a Special Adviser to HRH The Prince of Wales’ International Sustainability Unit.
She is an Honorary Professor of the Heriot Watt University, Scotland, and holds an MSc in Responsibility & Business Practice (Bath).

Donna joined Seafood Scotland in 2017, with over 20 years of experience working in economic development to foster business growth and international trade. She previously worked at Scottish Enterprise helping seafood companies grow and develop their capabilities while also liaising with stakeholders to broader opportunities.
A driving force in securing the future of the seafood sector, Donna spearheads the Scottish Ocean Cluster, an innovative collaboration between stakeholders to maximise the value of Scotland’s seafood industry. It brings together people from throughout the sector as well as biotech companies, researchers, retailers and more to collectively unlock the potential of fish and seafood byproducts and ensure a more sustainable marine ecosystem.
In her capacity as Chief Executive – a position she has held since 2019 – she has also supported Scotland’s seafood sector through the challenges brought on by Brexit and Covid-19, leaning on her extensive experience with government and economic strategy. Donna is Programme sponsor for People & Skills for Scotland Food & Drink Partnership – which includes chairing the Scotland Food & Drink’s Skills Advisory Group.

Irene is the Learning and Development Coordinator at Scottish Sea Farms. With responsibility for ongoing training and continual development across the company, she is currently completing an MSc in Organisational Psychology to further her expertise. Irene also fosters educational links within the local communities to promote the career opportunities within the aquaculture sector.

Charlotte is a Freshwater Optimiser at Bakkafrost Scotland. She has a master's degree in aquaculture from Harper Adams University and a PhD in aquaculture from the University of Stirling.

Dr Amina Moss is a Lecturer in Aquaculture Nutrition at the Institute of Aquaculture, University of Stirling. As an Aquaculture Nutrition Lecturer, Amina specialises in developing sustainable feeding strategies for crustaceans, formulating specialised diets such as microbound feeds, and extracting fractions such as protein, phospholipids from marine by-products. Committed to inclusivity, she contributes to initiatives like the Institute of Aquaculture's EDI committee and Aurora Advance HE.

Rhianna is a Scottish seaweed industry expert, researcher, and educator with several years’ experience working within the sector. Winner of Aquaculture UK’s Rising Star Award, she is passionate about the growth and expansion of the seaweed industry and its role in a rapidly developing blue economy. She is currently the Business Development Manager for the Scottish Seaweed Industry Association (SSIA).

As a marine extension associate for Maine Sea Grant, Annie supports the planning, development and implementation of the Maine Aquaculture Hub, a collaborative network that strives to situate aquaculture as a diversifying and strengthening industry for coastal economies. In addition, in her general work as an extension associate, Annie works alongside sea farmers, municipalities, regulators, researchers, teachers, students and others interested in aquaculture. Annie's background is in outdoor education, applied research, and shellfish husbandry. She is a US Coast Guard licensed captain and is based at UMaine's marine campus, the Darling Marine Center, in Walpole, Maine, USA.

Susan is the Executive Director for the Atlantic Canada Fish Farmers Association, where she started in 2015 after holding an Executive position at the Canadian Rivers Institute, at UNB.

Dr. Juli-Anne Russo is a Jamaican aquaculture scientist specialising in aquaculture biosecurity, nutrition, and feed management. She is the founder and CEO of the Caribbean Aquaculture Education and Innovation Hub which is the umbrella for Women in Caribbean Aquaculture, the Caribbean Aquaculture Network and Youth in Caribbean Aquaculture.

After completing an MSc in Aquaculture at the University of Algarve, Janina joined the Institute of Aquaculture at the University of Stirling to do a PhD in fish virology and vaccine development, and as a post-doc participated in one of the first Scottish viral cardiomyopathy projects.
After working for an environmental consultancy in Tenerife where she led the fish health section, Janina was involved in environmental impact studies as well as EU and Spanish Government research projects.
Janina then returned to Scotland to join Moredun Research Institute’s aquaculture group as a researcher. At Moredun, she focused on fish vaccine development and immunology of salmon, tilapia and Mediterranean species, and the discovery of biomarkers for CMS, PD and HSMI. She is now an Aquaculture Innovation Officer with SAIC.