South African scientist honoured with ocean medal

The University of Cape Town’s Professor Lynne Shannon has made history after being awarded the 2025 Prince Albert I Grand Medal for Ocean Science for her lifetime contributions to advancing understanding of the ocean and its ecosystems.

The award was presented at a ceremony at the Oceanographic Institute in Paris on December 8 .

Shannon, deputy director of UCT’s Marine and Antarctic Research Centre for Innovation and Sustainability (MARIS) and a research professor in the Department of Biological Sciences, is the first South African and the first recipient from the Global South to receive the prestigious ocean science medal.

The Prince Albert I Grand Medal recognises lifetime achievement, groundbreaking discovery, or a significant body of work in oceanography. Shannon was honoured for her pioneering research on ocean and marine ecosystem dynamics, ecosystem-based fisheries management, and climate–ocean interactions, work that has shaped global science and policy.

“I feel absolutely delighted and immensely humbled to have been awarded such prestigious recognition of my life's work,” Shannon said. “This reflects the incredible national and especially international networks of collaborative science that I've been honoured to be a part of.”

She said the award carries a responsibility to advance new ocean-focused research initiatives. “The award comes with a huge responsibility for me to take on new initiatives and follow new research directions that have been building for a while, and now will be all the more possible given such incredible support behind me.”

Addressing what she described as the polycrisis facing the ocean, Shannon said solutions require visionary thinking that recognises humans as part of nature and brings diverse knowledge systems together.

“I’m working on transformation of ocean-related decision-making by exploring and establishing linkages between law, governance, conservation, fisheries science, alternative knowledge systems, and the arts,” she said.

“It is an incredible honour receiving this award. I hope that with this prestigious award, doors will be opened for us here in South Africa to lead this ground-breaking research.”

The medal forms part of a 65-year tradition recognising exceptional contributions to ocean knowledge and stewardship. Previous recipients include Jacques-Yves Cousteau, Leonardo DiCaprio, Dame Ellen MacArthur, Professor Daniel Pauly and Professor Lisa Ann Levin.

UCT-MARIS director Professor Marcello Vichi said the recognition was historic. “This is the very first time anyone from the Global South – and particularly South Africa – has received this prestigious award,” he said.

“We are proud to be associated with a prestigious marine scientist like her.”

Shannon’s work has strengthened understanding of the ocean, improved fisheries policy, supported climate adaptation strategies and advanced more equitable ocean and marine resource management across Africa, reinforcing UCT’s role as a global leader in ocean science.

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