Ada Schmidtkunz

Ada Schmidtkunz specialises in maritime environmental and community resilience, supporting governments, international organisations and maritime stakeholders in preparing for and recovering from environmental and humanitarian disruptions affecting ships, ports and coastal communities. Her work connects international maritime frameworks with community-based adaptation, indigenous and local knowledge, and context-specific programme design.

Drawing on her experience delivering IMO technical cooperation programmes addressing marine plastic litter and biofouling across more than 30 partner countries spanning Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East, Ada supports marine pollution prevention, institutional preparedness, capacity development and multi-stakeholder coordination. She also brings experience in donor proposal development, resource mobilisation, climate adaptation and environmental programming for vulnerable and displaced communities. Ada brings lived professional experience across five continents and is fluent in French and German with working proficiency in Spanish and Portuguese, enabling direct engagement with diverse cultural and institutional contexts.

Her approach is based on best-fit rather than one-size-fits-all solutions. She works with clients and communities to integrate scientific and regulatory evidence with local ecological knowledge, cultural context and established coping practices. Her developing focus encompasses ship-related environmental emergencies, port and coastal disruption, conflict-affected maritime systems and locally-led recovery.