Tom Dallison

Senior Project Manager

Tom Dallison is a senior consultant and conservation specialist with expertise spanning coral reef conservation, international biodiversity policy and the governance of biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction. Through Blue Pangolin Consulting, he contributes to the design and delivery of international programmes for governments, intergovernmental organisations and philanthropic partners, with work covering coral reef conservation, sustainable financing, area-based management tools, management effectiveness, capacity development, and the ratification and early implementation of the High Seas Treaty. He is closely engaged in global coral reef science and assessment through the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, serving as co-editor of the Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2025 and as a contributing author to regional and global flagship assessments that inform international decision making.

Tom is a senior marine conservation consultant specialising in ocean governance, coral reef conservation and the conservation and sustainable use of biodiversity beyond national jurisdiction. Based in the UK, his work focuses on the design, coordination and evaluation of international programmes that translate science into policy relevant and operational outcomes.

At Blue Pangolin Consulting, Tom implements and coordinates complex, multi-partner initiatives for governments, intergovernmental organisations and philanthropic partners. He holds key roles in the formulation and delivery of large-scale programmes supporting the ratification and early implementation of the High Seas Treaty, contributing technical and policy inputs across area-based management tools, capacity development and programme design. 

Tom previously provided strategic and organisational support to the International Coral Reef Initiative as Strategic Adviser, working with successive government chairs to strengthen governance processes and policy influence. He continues to play a central role in global coral reef assessment through his ongoing work with the Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network, where he supports editorial coordination and technical oversight for regional and global reporting. He is a co-editor of the Status of Coral Reefs of the World: 2025, co-edited the Status and Trends of Coral Reefs of the Pacific: 1980 – 2023, and co-authored of the Status and Trends of Caribbean Coral Reefs: 1970–2025.

Tom is a member of the IUCN World Commission on Protected Areas and the IUCN SSC Coral Specialist Group, and is recognised for delivering technically rigorous, policy relevant outputs that support effective ocean governance, coral reef conservation and High Seas implementation.

Publications

  • Wicquart, J., Mathon, L., Petit, A., Rivera-Sosa, A., & McField, M. (eds.), 2025. Status and Trends of Caribbean Coral Reefs: 1970 – 2024. Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) and International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI). DOI: https://doi.org/10.59387/BDHF9180 (writing – review & editing)
  • Degemmis, A., Darling, E., Piednoir, M.-C., Brun, V., Claudet, J., Jupiter, S., Monfared, M. A. A., McLeod, E., Clarke, P., Dallison, T., James, R. S., Rylance, A., Staub, F., & Trudeau, N. (2025). Coral reef commitments are largely absent from national biodiversity and climate frameworks. Zenodo. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17653674
  • Wicquart J., Towle E. K., Dallison T., Staub F., and Planes S. (eds.), 2025. Status and Trends of Coral Reefs of the Pacific: 1980-2023. Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) and International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI). doi.org/10.59387/WIUJ2936
  • Schaffelke, B., Brigdale, A., Dallison, T., Koss, J., McField, M., Petit, A., Planes, S., Rocle, N., Staub, F., Towle, E., and Wicquart, J. (2025): The status and trends of coral reefs around the world – connecting science to conservation action, One Ocean Science Congress 2025, Nice, France, 3–6 Jun 2025, OOS2025-938, https://doi.org/10.5194/oos2025-938.
  • Dallison, Tet al. (2025) ‘Effectively managing area-based management tools: A new toolkit for the conservation of Marine Mammals’, Marine Policy, 172, p. 106492. doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2024.106492. 
  • Hein MY, Staub F (2021) Mapping the Global Funding Landscape for Coral Reef Restoration. International Coral Reef Initiative. 23pp. Available at icriforum.org. Contributing Author. 
  • Chapter 12. Status and trends of coral reefs of the Caribbean region, pp. 1-25 In: Souter, D., Planes, S., Wicquart, J., Logan, M., Obura, D., Staub, F. (eds) (2021). Status of coral reefs of the world: 2020 report. Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network (GCRMN) and International Coral Reef Initiative (ICRI). DOI: 10.59387/WOTJ9184
  • DeGemmis, A., Claar, D., Corcoran, E., Cooper, C., Cripps, S., Darling, E., Dallison, T., Grimsditch, G., Jupiter, S., Lieberman, S., Schindler-Murray, L., Staub, F. & Virdin, J. (2021). Opportunities for Coral Reefs at the Ocean-Climate Policy Nexus. The Wildlife Conservation Society, P16
  • Vercammen, A., McGowan, J., Knight, A. T., Pardede, S., Muttaqin, E., Harris, J., Ahmadia, G., Estradivari, Dallison, T., Selid, E. & Berger, M. (2019). Evaluating the impact of accounting for coral cover in large-scale marine conservation prioritizations. Diversity and Distributions. 25: 1564 – 1574. [https://doi.org/10.1111/ddi.12957]
  • Knowles, R. & Dallison, T. (2020). The influence of barangay Napantao’s MPA on coral reef community assemblages in 2019. Coral Cay Conservation; Philippines. Tongham, United Kingdom.
  • Dallison, T. & Sorrell, M. (2020). Montserrat Ridge to Reef Conservation Project; a summary of the marine coastal zone and recommendations for management. Coral Cay Conservation; Montserrat. Tongham, United Kingdom.

Conferences & Events

  • The Road from Nice to Belém – The Last Stand for Coral Reefs (11 June 2025), WWF Brazil, Third UN Ocean Conference, Nice (France). Speaker.
  • The State of the Coral Reefs in the Wider Caribbean Sea (11 June 2025), SPAW-RAC, Third UN Ocean Conference, Nice (France). Speaker.
  • Valuing the Blue: Unlocking Investment Through Marine Ecosystem Valuation (10 June 2025), Great Barrier Reef Foundation, Third UN Ocean Conference, Nice (France). Speaker.
  • Paving the way to Solve the Global Coral Crisis (09 June 2025), CORDAP, Third UN Ocean Conference, Nice (France). Speaker.
  • Data, Information and Knowledge Management Strategies (15 May 2025), GEF IW:LEARN LME24, Athens (Greece). Speaker.
  • Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network: Western Indian Ocean Workshop (11 February 2025), GCRMN & GFCR, Zanzibar (Tanzania). Speaker.
  • Advancing the Marine Conservation Breakthroughs – connecting global action to Scale Nature-based Solutions (27 October 2025), CBD COP16, Cali (Colombia). Speaker.
  • Boosting Coral Health: Caribbean Strategies for Climate Resilience (25 October 2025), CBD COP16, Cali (Colombia). Speaker.
  • Global Coral Reef Monitoring Network: Caribbean Workshop (30 September 2024), GCRMN & GFCR, Puerto Morelos (Mexico). Speaker.
  • International Coral Reef Initiative 38th General Meeting (10 September 2024), ICRI, Jeddah (Saudi Arabia). Speaker.
  • The Coral Reef Breakthrough (11 April 2024), 2024 UN Ocean Decade Conference, Barcelona (Spain). Speaker.
  • International Coral Reef Initiative 37th General Meeting (20 September 2023), Hawai’i. Speaker. 
  • Developing the Samoa National Marine Sanctuary: The Marine Mammals Management Toolkit Workshop (23 April 2024), Online, Speaker. 
  • Marine Mammals Twinning Partners Workshop (26 October 2023), Ocean Governance Project, Scituate (United States)
  • Towards effective Management of Marine Mammals: The Marine Mammals Management Toolkit (12 September 2023), IC EG MAMA – HELCOM, Online. Speaker.
  • Mediterranean Marine Protected Areas: Scoping Study for Fully & highly Protected Areas (21 March 2023), Monaco Ocean Week, Monaco. Speaker.
  • Training Workshop – “Towards Effective Management of Marine Mammals in MPAs: the Marine Mammals Management Toolkit” (7 March 2023), 3rd Humpback Whale World Congress, Santo Domingo (Dominican Republic). Speaker.

  • Marine Conservation Financing: High-level Segment Roundtable (9 February 2023), IMPAC5, Vancouver (Canada). Speaker. 

  • Generation Now: Welcome Reception (4 February 2023), IMPAC5, Vancouver (Canada). Speaker.

  • The Marine Mammal Management Toolkit: A tool for MPA managers and policy makers (28 October 2022), MedPAN MPA Management Effectiveness Workshop, Montenegro. Speaker.
  • A Management Toolkit for Marine Turtles: Building on the Marine Mammals Management Toolkit (18 October 2022), 7th Mediterranean Conference on marine Turtles, Tetouan (Morocco). Speaker.
  • Marine Megafauna & Blue Carbon: How protecting charismatic ocean species contributes to climate protection (29 June 2022), Whale & Dolphin Conservation, Lisboa (Portugal). Speaker.
  • The Marine Mammal Management Toolkit: A tool for MPA managers and policy makers (30 June 2025), Second UN Ocean Conference, Lisboa (Portugal). Speaker.
  • The Marine Mammals Twinning Partners Workshop 2022 (3 May 2022), Ocean Governance Project, Cambridge (UK). Speaker.
  • Training on Two Innovative Toolkits for MPA Managers to Assess MPA Marine Mammals Management and MPA Resilience-based Management (2 December 2021), MPA Forum, Monaco. Speaker.