John Nevill: Founder and Editor
John is an environment professional with more than 25 years experience in the conservation and sustainable use of biological diversity in Seychelles. He has worked broadly in this domain for government, NGOs, international agencies and the private sector. He served as the Director of Conservation, in the Department of Environment (1996 to 2002). Since 2002 he has worked primarily as an independent consultant with a focus on strategic planning and policy. He has authored various national strategic policy documents including: the Seychelles National Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan (2016 to 2020), the Seychelles Wetlands Policy, the Seychelles Marine Spatial Planning policy, the Blue Economy Concept paper and the Seychelles National Plan of Action for the Conservation and Management of Sharks (2007-2011 & 2016-2020). In 2020 he co-authored the Seychelles Coral Reef Policy and Action Plan.
He has had an interest in the artisanal shark fishery since 2001 and has monitored the artisanal fishery catch since 2012 with an initial focus upon sharks, later expanding to Elasmobranchs and Serranids. In 2019/20 he undertook an intensive 12 month survey of the parrotfish fishery. It is his work on the fishery catch that provided the basis for the development of the Seatizens website.
John authored the 2013 Species Identification Guide for Commonly Caught Fish in the Seychelles Near-Shore Artisanal Fishery and the 2015 Identification Guide for the Sharks of the Seychelles Artisanal fishery.
Christophe Mason-Parker: Editor
Chris has over 15 years experience in the field of tropical marine conservation and has worked in Southeast Asia, the Caribbean and the Western Indian Ocean. Since 2009 he has been active within the Seychelles environment sector where he is currently the CEO of the Marine Conservation Society Seychelles, a locally registered NGO with the aim of improving the conservation of marine ecosystems through scientific, management, educational and training programmes.
An experienced SCUBA diver with a keen interest in the taxonomy of marine tropical fishes, Chris has completed over 1000 dives throughout the Seychelles EEZ. He has designed and conducted multiple marine monitoring programmes and has authored and contributed to several reports and papers.
Chris is the author of a number of books about Seychelles biodiversity, including Underwater Guide to Seychelles and Reef Fishes of Seychelles.