- Founder, Global Ocean Trust
- Senior Advisor, Conservation Finance, IUCN Global Marine & Polar Programme
- Advisory Board Member, Deep Ocean Stewardship Initiative (DOSI) and EU iAtlantic Project
- Affiliate Scholar, Institute for Advanced Sustainability Studies (IASS), Potsdam
Torsten Thiele is the Founder of the Global Ocean Trust, focussing on marine conservation, technology and governance. He has over 20-years experience in structuring complex international project financings for public and private sector clients.
Having worked with major financial institutions such as JP Morgan and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, he was till 2013 Head of Telecommunications Project Finance at Investec Bank plc, where his remit included subsea cable transactions. Torsten holds degrees in law and economics from Bonn University, an MPA from the Harvard Kennedy School and and MPhil in Conservation Leadership from the University of Cambridge and was a 2014 Harvard Advanced Leadership Fellow.
Some recent publications:
- Turley, C, Racault, M-F, Roberts, M, Sharples, J, Scott, BE, Thiele, T et al (2021). Why the Ocean Matters in Climate Negotiations. COP26 Universities Network Briefing.
- Laffoley, D et al (2021) The forgotten ocean – why CoP26 must call for vastly greater scaled-up responses to ocean change, protection and restoration as well as action on greenhouse gas emissions. Viewpoint: Aquatic Conserv
- Vierros, M, Balgos, M et al. (2021) Assessing Progress on Ocean and Climate Action: A Report of the Roadmap to Oceans and Climate Action (ROCA) Initiative.
