Thor H. Asgeirsson
Currently on secondment to the World Bank. Senior Fisheries Specialist located in the Solomon Islands.
Thor is a fisheries development expert with decades of experience in the fields of fisheries science, international development cooperation, and education. With graduate degrees in both marine ecology and science education, Thor served as the Deputy Director of the United Nations University Fisheries Training Programme starting in 2000 and was made Director of the UNESCO GRÓ Fisheries Training Programme in 2019. Throughout his time with the FTP, Thor has worked on several special projects in addition to his regular administrative duties, including evaluation of fisheries development interventions in cooperation with NORAD/ICEIDA, and a five-month stint in the Caribbean as a special advisor to the Caribbean Regional Fisheries Mechanism. As UNESCO GRÓ FTP Director, Thor is responsible for the strategic direction of the programme, and administration of its activities. Thor is an avid scuba diver and can be found most weekends exploring fascinating sea life along the cold waters of the Icelandic coast.
Mary Frances Davidson
Currently on parental leave.
mary@groftp.is
Mary Frances Davidson has a wide-ranging experience in environmental science, sustainability, education, development, and administration. Her research background centres around higher education for sustainability, programme evaluation, institutional capacity building, and implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. She began working at the Fisheries Training Programme in 2011, and since that time her responsibilities have focused on international fisheries development, including coordinating short courses in developing countries, strategic planning, programme monitoring and evaluation, and instruction on sustainability, gender mainstreaming in development, research project design and academic writing. As the Deputy Director, Mary Frances is responsible for the administration of the six-month programme of the UNESCO GRÓ Fisheries Training Programme.
Stefán Úlfarsson
Specialist
stefan@groftp.is
Stefán’s responsibilities include web publications and topics related to the sociology and economics of the fishery sector. He has a BA degree in political science and two MSc degrees; one in fisheries science and another in the economic development of the Asia-Pacific Region. He has lived in China for extended periods of time; as a student, journalist and independent consultant. In Iceland, he was an economist at the Icelandic Confederation of Labour (ASÍ) for over eight years. Stefán has considerable experience of teaching young people and adults. Early in his career, he worked in the fishing industry on Icelandic fishing vessels and at various processing plants.
Julie Ingham
Director
julie@groftp.is
Operations Manager since 2017 with experience in all aspects of FTP´s operations, Julie has temporarily taken on the position of FTP Director while Mary Frances is on parental leave. Julie comes from a background in company management, adult education, communication coaching, and project management in development. With a Master’s in International Development Julie has worked for the Icelandic Red Cross in the field of migration and refugee support and as a consultant on development projects. At GRÓ-FTP her responsibilities have been to keep the administrative wheels running smoothly, finance and planning, teach communication skills, project design, academic writing, and coordinate short courses in developing countries.
Dr. Tumi Tómasson
Consultant and Senior Advisor
tumi@groftp.is
Dr. Tomasson headed the northern division of the Institute of Freshwater Fisheries in 1983-1998, with a five-year interruption while he worked for the Icelandic International Development Agency in Malawi, first as an advisor to the SADC Regional Fisheries Training Programme, and later as a research consultant for stock evaluation on Lake Malawi. He was the director of the UNU-FTP from its establishment in 1998 until 2019. GRÓ-FTP often calls upon Dr. Tómasson in the capacity as a consultant and senior advisor.