Welcome to Waves and Waypoints, where I share content from my professional and personal pursuits.
I am the chief scientist at Global Fishing Watch, where I lead the research and data science team. We use satellite data and machine learning to map human activity at sea, focusing on fishing activity. We believe that transparency is critical to managing the oceans better. Since joining in 2015, I’ve supported a wide range of scientific research, including the first ever global high resolution map of fishing activity, one of the largest revelations of illegal fishing ever, and the first global map of all industrial activity at sea using satellite imagery.
Before working at Global Fishing Watch, I worked as a climate researcher, advocate, journalist, and consultant. You can find more on linkedin.
I have also spent three years of my life traveling by bicycle. I believe that bicycle touring is the best way to experience the world and meet people across a diversity of cultures. I used my first long journey, across North and South America, from 2005-2007, to draw attention to climate change, and I authored a book about the trip. I later biked across Asia. You can read about these journeys on my other site, rideforclimate.com.
I was formerly based in the California Bay Area, but since the pandemic live in South Lake Tahoe with my family.
On this site I will share links to some of my work at Global Fishing Watch, stories about bike touring and climate change, and other pursuits. A good deal of the content is simply creating an archive of Global Fishing Watch posts that I share on Linkedin. I originally started this blog in 2011 when I was working as a data journalist with Climate Central and EcoWest, and have left some of the older content here.
You can contact me at David at Kroodsma.com.