Keynote Information

Title: Framing the Future: Leveraging the foundation of evidence, collaboration, and novel technologies for rapid Insights to support offshore energy roadmaps
Speaker: Dr. Cormac Booth
 

Dr Cormac Booth is a specialist in assessing the impacts of underwater sound on marine mammals, with a strong focus on translating scientific evidence into effective decision‑making for policy, regulation, and industry. His work combines technical expertise in acoustic monitoring and population modelling with a pragmatic approach to applying science in support of environmental management.

 

Cormac has led or developed major projects for offshore wind developers, regulatory agencies, and research funders including The Crown Estate’s Offshore Wind Evidence and Change (OWEC) programme, Carbon Trust Offshore Renewables JIP and US Navy research divisions. He has also worked extensively with national and international bodies such as Marine Scotland, Natural England, the Dutch Rijkswaterstaat, the U.S. Office of Naval Research, NOAA, and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. His projects have informed evidence‑based frameworks for assessing and mitigating the effects of human activities on marine species, often addressing complex, cross‑disciplinary challenges across policy, ecology, and acoustics.

 

A central theme in his work is the integration of evidence into structured decision processes - whether through established population modelling frameworks like the Population Consequences of Disturbance (PCoD) model or emerging tools that provide rapid insights, such as the CAB approach. Cormac’s leadership of these collaborative, high‑impact projects reflects his commitment to ensuring that decisions affecting marine ecosystems are guided by sound, transparent, and defensible science.