Our guests are Emily Hazelwood and Amber Sparks.

In the interview: Emily and Amber discuss their programs to repurpose oil rig structures as coral reefs, which turns out to be an economically and ecologically good solution to the end-of-life of these structures. Learn how they combine and apply their talents and passions around marine biology, diving, sustainability, and project management.

About Emily Hazelwood: Emily is a marine conservation biologist and offshore energy consultant. She has a B.A. in Environmental Science from Connecticut College and an M.A.S degree in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation from Scripps Institution of Oceanography. Emily was recognized on Forbes 30 Under 30 list in the energy sector for her work with Blue Latitudes to develop sustainable, creative, and cost-effective solutions for the environmental issues that surround the offshore energy industry.

Emily has extensive experience as a project manager conducting marine environmental impact assessments and designing and implementing Remotely Operated Vehicle (ROV) surveys for governmental agencies and private sector clients worldwide. Much of her work is centered around the ecological, socio-economic, regulatory and policy issues surrounding the implementation of Rigs to Reefs programs in the United States and internationally.

About Amber Sparks: Amber is a marine environmental scientist and oil and gas consultant. She has a B.A. in Marine Science from UC Berkeley and a M.A.S in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation from Scripps Institution of Oceanography. In 2018, Amber was recognized on Forbes 30 Under 30 list in the energy sector for her work with Blue Latitudes to develop sustainable, creative, and cost-effective solutions for the environmental issues that surround the offshore energy industry.

Amber also has a strong background in technology and public outreach. A former Ocean Curator at Google, she engineered and launched intelligent layers in Google Earth and Google Maps that distill and relate complex concepts in ocean science for a variety of audiences. Today she uses those skills in the oil and gas industry to map fishing activity in proximity to offshore structures and inform decommissioning decisions in relation to commercial fisheries.

About the podcast: Asking the questions are Dr Nigel Williams (UK) & Richard Maltzman (USA)

Emily & Amber answer questions on: What were the social and political factors that encouraged or inhibited the consideration of Rigs2Reef projects?; What quantitative and qualitative areas do you consider for a R2R project business case?; What are the milestones and timeframes for a typical R2R project?; How are R2R projects aligned with existing or planned initiatives at a community or location?; How did you manage stakeholder tensions in previous R2R projects?; What approaches did you use to identify and communicate positive and negative uncertainties in R2R Projects?; What can communities do – what have they done - to signal their support for R2R?; How do you quantify potential uses of the R2Rs by other stakeholders such as diving tour operators or other marine tourism operators?

First available on 10 October 2021 on Youtube.

Available to view as a video on Spotify.