Professor Jon Copley

Jon has taught marine ecology and oceanography for more than 25 years and he is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA). He has received Vice-Chancellor's Awards for Teaching and for Postgraduate Supervision & Training, and been nominated several times by students for Students' Union teaching awards.

Jon is currently the Module Leader of SOES6008+3055 Deep-Sea Ecology for postgraduate Masters & 3rd+4th Year undergraduate students, and Co-Leader of the SOES3051 Shallow-Water Survey Techniques field course for 3rd Year marine biology students.

He also lectures first-year students in SOES1006 Introduction to Marine Ecology & Evolution, SOES1007 Marine Invertebrates, and SOES1011 Introduction to Functional Marine Biology; and he provides training in SOES6018+6081+6084 Key Skills for postgraduate Masters students. He was previously Director of Postgraduate Taught Programmes in Ocean & Earth Science.

In digital and online education, Jon published highly cited early research on how students use recordings of lectures, and he was Lead Educator of the University's Exploring Our Ocean Massive Open Online Course (MOOC), which was taken up by more than 60 000 people from 180+ countries and Highly Commended in The Ocean Awards.

Jon is a mentor and assessor for AdvanceHE fellowship qualifications, supporting colleagues across the University to develop their educational practice.

Jon has been involved in exploring the deep ocean over the past three decades, including using Human-Occupied Vehicles (HOVs) and Remotely Operated Vehicles (ROVs) and leading expeditions aboard research ships.

He took part in the first Human-Occupied Vehicle dive to the world's deepest known hydrothermal vents, becoming the first British person to dive more than 5000 metres deep in the ocean, and the first Human-Occupied Vehicle dives to reach 1000 metres deep in the Antarctic.

Jon is an Advisory Board member for the global Deep-Ocean Stewardship Initiative (DOSI), and he is a former Scientific Associate of the Natural History Museum in London and a National Geographic Explorer. He was also previously a Co-Chair of the InterRidge initiative for international cooperation in research at mid-ocean ridges.

In science communication, Jon routinely interacts with broadcasters and journalists to raise awareness of deep-sea issues and discoveries, and often talks about exploring the deep ocean at public events and festivals.

He works with documentary-makers to share the exploration of the deep ocean with people worldwide, for example as a science advisor and onscreen contributor for programmes such as BBC Blue Planet II, and has also advised deep-sea eco-thriller and sci-fi series.

Jon is the author of Deep Sea: 10 Things You Should Know (Seven Dials, 2023) and Ask An Ocean Explorer (Hodder & Stoughton, 2019), and popular-science articles in outlets including The Guardian, Nature and New Scientist, where he was previously a Reporter and Assistant News Editor.

Beyond his University role, in 2006 Jon co-founded SciConnect Ltd with colleagues in science journalism, creating a capacity-building company that has trained more than 15,000 scientists in how to share their work with wider audiences. He has worked as a Director of the company to develop and deliver training programmes for clients including research institutions, funding bodies, government agencies, NGOs and companies across the UK and in Europe.