Gregory Stone

About Gregory Stone

I’ve spent my career at the intersection of ocean science, conservation, and global policy — and I’ve come to believe that solving the world’s hardest environmental problems requires engaging with them honestly, not from a distance.As Chief Ocean Scientist at The Metals Company, I lead efforts to develop responsible methods for recovering polymetallic nodules from the deep Pacific seafloor — minerals essential to the global transition to renewable energy. I also serve as President of Ocean Renaissance, my consulting practice. Previously, I co-founded Pole to Pole Conservation, a nonprofit dedicated to ocean health worldwide.My earlier roles include EVP and Chief Ocean Scientist at Conservation International, Senior Science Advisor to the UN Special Envoy for Oceans, Oceans Chair at the World Economic Forum, Senior Vice President at the New England Aquarium, and Research Scientist at NOAA, where I held top secret clearance. I currently serve on the Board of Governors of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.I am one of a small number of aquanauts to have completed three multi-week missions aboard the Aquarius underwater habitat — the world’s only undersea research station — giving me a perspective on ocean life that few scientists have experienced firsthand. Across research dives in every ocean on Earth, I’ve published hundreds of scientific and popular articles, authored four books, and produced documentaries for Discovery Channel and National Geographic. I’ve delivered a TED Talk, lectured at Davos, and contributed to radio and television programs worldwide. I am also co-founder of the Ocean Health Index and the Phoenix Islands Protected Area — one of the world’s largest marine protected areas.I work with boards, governments, and organizations that want rigorous scientific thinking applied to real-world decisions about the ocean. If that’s a conversation worth having, I’d welcome the connection.

Experience

1. Chief Ocean Scientist

   The Metals Company

   Feb 2018 — Present · Los Angeles, CA, US

   DeepGreen’s purpose is to produce metals from polymetallic rocks to power electric vehicles. Electric vehicles and renewable energy are part of the solution, but we know that scaling these globally will require hundreds of millions of tons of new metals. We believe that producing these urgently needed battery metals from polymetallic nodules from the deep ocean is society’s best option. Our vision is a zero-carbon, circular economy.

Education

• The University of the South Pacific

  Doctor of Philosophy - PhD, Marine Sciences

  1993 — 1999

• College of the Atlantic

  Bachelors Arts, Human Ecology, Marine Biology

  1977 — 1982

• University of Rhode Island

  Masters in marine policy, Marine policy

  1989 — 1992