#47: Turning societal concerns to empirical research questions with Ellen Pape

In this episode, Ellen walks us through the method behind a remarkable 2025 report: a structured, voluntary exercise that translated dozens of competing societal concerns into 80 concrete, actionable research questions about the environmental impacts of polymetallic nodule mining in the Clarion-Clipperton Zone. The process drew on input from industry contractors, environmental organizations, policy bodies, and independent scientific experts — and it was done without a single euro of dedicated funding.

She also shares the research she considers most urgent: understanding ecological connectivity across the deep sea, particularly how well the network of protected reference zones can actually support recovery and biodiversity preservation. Whether you’re new to the deep sea mining conversation or deep inside it, this episode is a masterclass in what it looks like to take “we just don’t know enough” and turn it into something you can actually act on.

Follow Ellen

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/ellenpape/

• Ghent University Profile: https://www.marinebiology.ugent.be/ellen-pape

• ResearchGate: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ellen-Pape

Chapters

* 00:00:00 – Introduction: Ellen Pape & the Belgian Stakeholder Report

* 00:05:02 – How the Roundtable Process Started

* 00:08:09 – The Method: From Societal Concerns to 80 Research Questions

* 00:18:29 – Translating Concerns into Operational Science

* 00:23:31 – The Mitigation Debate

* 00:34:40 – Working in a Polarized Field

* 00:41:59 – Who Gets to Decide the Trade-Offs?

* 00:46:06 – What Research Ellen Says Matters Most

* 00:51:09 – Where to Find Ellen & the Report

Resources

• Belgian Stakeholder Report (Institute of Natural Sciences): https://www.naturalsciences.be

• Amon et al. (2022) — Assessment of Scientific Gaps in Deep-Seabed Mining (Marine Policy): https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpol.2022.105006

• MiningImpact 3 Project (JPI Oceans): https://www.jpi-oceans.eu/en/ecological-aspects-deep-sea-mining

• International Seabed Authority (ISA): https://www.isa.org.jm

• MiningImpact / JPI Oceans: https://www.jpi-oceans.eu/en/ecological-aspects-deep-sea-mining

• Institute of Natural Sciences, Brussels: https://www.naturalsciences.be

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