Andy Cornish

Dr. Andy Cornish is a marine ecologist who grew up in Hong Kong. While working for WWF-Hong Kong as their Conservation Director, he was instrumental in introducing Hong Kong’s first sustainable seafood guide, shark fin advocacy and led the successful Save Our Seas campaign. This campaign led to a ban on all trawling in Hong Kong waters, starting in late 2012. Prior to this and after gaining his doctorate on reef fishes, he worked for the Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources in American Samoa, and taught fish and fisheries related undergraduate courses at the University of Hong Kong.

Andy currently leads WWF’s global programme to conserve sharks and rays, Sharks: Restoring the Balance, a major initiative that works in more than fifteen countries to reverse declines in shark and ray populations. He is an experienced public speaker and has been an invited speaker at events as diverse as the Wonderfruit Festival, Shanghai International Nature Conservation Festival, Indonesia Shark and Ray Symposium, and Ecozine Live.