Stefanie Rog officially joined the Board on 1 July, following the appointment of Steve Philips, who joined on 1 January. The Board of Trustees provides strategic oversight and governance for the organisation, helping ensure ASC continues to deliver its mission of transforming aquaculture through robust standards, credible assurance and market incentives that drive positive environmental and social outcomes.
Rog brings more than 15 years of international conservation experience and holds a PhD in conservation biology. Throughout her career she has worked across a wide range of ecosystems, from Cambodia's coral reefs and Ethiopia's lakes to Australia's mangrove forests. Now based in Saudi Arabia, she leads coordination across six protected areas, strengthening restoration, research, rewilding and community engagement.
Philips brings more than two decades of experience in retail merchandising, sourcing and seafood supply-chain leadership. At Wegmans Food Markets, he leads seafood category strategy and developed the company's seafood sourcing policy, with a focus on food safety, environmental and social considerations, and digital traceability. He also serves as vice-chair of the Supervisory Board of the Global Dialogue on Seafood Traceability (GDST), working with global partners to advance traceability standards across the seafood sector.
Chris Ninnes, CEO of ASC, said in a press release: "ASC is fortunate to welcome two outstanding leaders to our Board of Trustees. Stefanie's deep expertise in conservation, restoration and landscape-scale environmental management, combined with Steve's extensive experience in seafood sourcing, retail leadership and traceability, further strengthens the breadth of knowledge guiding our organisation.
"As aquaculture continues to play an increasingly important role in global food systems, it is essential that ASC benefits from perspectives spanning both environmental stewardship and commercial implementation. Their combined experience will help ensure ASC continues to deliver practical, science-based solutions that create value for producers, businesses, investors and consumers, while driving meaningful improvements for people and nature."
The appointments reflect ASC's commitment to bringing together expertise from across conservation, science, seafood supply chains and global markets to help guide the organisation as it continues to drive measurable improvements across global aquaculture, strengthen confidence in ASC-certified farmed seafood and maximise its positive impact for people and nature. More information about ASC governance and the Board of Trustees can be found on the ASC Governance webpage.
