VANESSA ROBITZCH

Vanessa Robitzch (PhD) is a marine biologist specializing in coral reef ecology, population genetics, and conservation. She currently manages the conservation program at the General Organization for Conservation of Coral Reefs and Turtles in the Red Sea (SHAMS), leading community engagement initiatives. Her research combines ecological, biological, and genetic data to understand species distribution, connectivity, and resilience under climate change, with studies ranging from the Caribbean and Antarctica to the Indo-Pacific and Red Sea. Vanessa was born on San Andrés Island (Colombia), studied in Germany (B.Sc., M.Sc., ISATEC), completed her PhD at KAUST, and has worked in Chile and Saudi Arabia, bringing a global perspective to reef science, policy, and conservation.