SPEAKER. Dr. Ricardo “Rick” Tapilatu is a scientist and has a range of experience as a field researcher, manager of a non-profit organization, and university lecturer. He is a faculty member in the Fisheries and Marine Science departments, teaching marine biology, ecology and conservation. He is also an active staff member in the University of Papua’s (UNIPA) post-graduate program, teaching and supervising Masters students in Environmental Science and Marine Resources and also Doctoral students of Environmental Science. Currently, Dr. Tapilatu is the head of the Research Centre of Pacific Marine Resources at UNIPA, Manokwari in Papua Barat Indonesia. He is a conservationist with a passion for all things related to the marine environment. Having lived by the ocean in multiple coastal cities in Papua Indonesia he has always been fascinated by nature and biodiversity and has dedicated his life to protecting marine wildlife and ecosystems. Dr. Tapilatu has spent more than 25 years working on conservation initiatives throughout the Bird’s Head Seascape (BHS), a global epicentre of marine biodiversity and megafauna in the Western Pacific region and also in Indonesia. Partnering with multiple research institutions, Dr. Tapilatu has been studying the ecology and conservation of marine megafauna in relation to both local and global dynamic processes. In 2018, he was awarded a Pew Fellowship in Marine Conservation to focus on developing conservation strategies for understanding environmental factors of leatherback nesting beaches on the north coast of BHS, while mitigating the effects of global climate change.
