Gabriel Vianna

Co-Principal Investigator - Shark Ecology & Conservation

Gabriel joined the CDF in 2022 as Co-Principal Investigator of the Shark Ecology Project and since 2023 is the Technical Director of the “Habla Tiburón” Project. Gabriel has a Master’s degree in Biological Oceanography (University of Rio Grande, Brazil) and a PhD in Marine Biology (University of Western Australia). His PhD research focused on the ecology and conservation of reef sharks in Palau (Micronesia). This work led to further shark conservation projects across the Indo-Pacific, including Fiji, Australia, Borneo and the Chagos Archipelago.

As a post-doctoral Research Fellow at the University of Western Australia, Gabriel contributed to a multinational project to assess the status of fish populations in all coastal countries in the world. Prior to this, he worked for several years as a marine scientist for conservation NGOs in Brazil, developing fisheries monitoring programs and providing science-based recommendations to improve management of artisanal and industrial fisheries.

Gabriel’s professional career has been influenced by years of work as a field marine biologist on the Great Barrier Reef (Australia) and on scientific expeditions around the world, where he became deeply connected to ocean conservation.