Overview
Dominique Benzaken is a senior policy advisor specialized in ocean governance, blue economy, and blue finance. She has 20 years’ experience working with governments, inter-governmental organizations and non-government organisations to develop policies and build capacity to advance the conservation and sustainable development of the ocean nationally and internationally, mainly in the context of Small Island Developing States of the Indo pacific region.
Some recent collaborations include the financing mechanisms for blue economy in Mozambique, regional sustainability governance for the Red Sea and the development of Seychelles blue economy roadmap. She was previously a senior marine policy advisor with The Nature Conservancy, The International Union for Conservation of Nature and the Secretariat of the Pacific Environment Programme, following a formative career with the Australian Government and the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority.
As a PhD candidate with the Australian National Centre for Ocean resources and Security, her research interests are focused on enabling a sustainable and equitable blue economy through good governance and equitable financing. She is a Visiting Fellow with the Crawford School of Public Policy at the Australian National University, a senior advisor to the Ocean Assets Institute and the Global Island Partnership and a member of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas. She is an outdoor enthusiast and a vintage fashion addict.