Alfred “Bubba” Cook has spent a lifetime on the ocean and the last 21 years working in fisheries conservation and management. At age 18, he joined the United States Navy’s Nuclear Power Program, which took him around the world and sparked an interest in global affairs and, especially, international fisheries. Troubled by fishery declines he observed at home and abroad, he sought out an education focused on fisheries policy and law. In 2000, he received a B.S. degree in Fisheries and Aquaculture from Texas A&M University followed in 2003 by a J.D. with a certificate in Natural Resource Policy and Environmental Law from Lewis & Clark College, making him well suited to take on complex policy initiatives in large-scale fisheries. After law school, he was hired by the U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service in Alaska where he led a dedicated team in the implementation of one of the world’s most complex fishery management programmes for the North Pacific crab fishery made famous by the TV show “Deadliest Catch.” He later joined the World Wide Fund for Nature’s (WWF’s) Arctic Programme to support fisheries conservation efforts across the Bering Sea from the Russian Far East to Alaska’s remote indigenous communities. In 2010, he joined the U.S. Peace Corps in Fiji, where he supported several grassroots marine conservation projects over two years. From 2012 until 2024, Bubba worked as the Western and Central Pacific Tuna Programme Manager for WWF based in New Zealand, where he focused on advancing policy initiatives in tuna fisheries management across the Pacific region. As the Policy Director for Sharks Pacific, Bubba seeks to secure national and regional fisheries policy improvements and support innovative technology solutions to ensure the sustainability of our oceans.
If I were a shark: I would aspire to be a “flat shark”, specifically a giant manta ray (a.k.a., “majestic sea flap-flap”) because they have the largest brain to body ratio of any fish and would surely be the wisest, most empathetic, and patient of all sea creatures. Moreover, they literally fly through the ocean and despite their enormous size (7+m across!) are gentle giants that feed on plankton.
My happy place: Out on the open ocean. There is nothing more simultaneously humbling and peaceful than sitting on a boat in calm seas on a dark night where the stars reflect such that you feel as though you are floating in the middle of a sphere of stars.
When I was a kid: I wanted to be either Jacques Cousteau or a superhero. In a way, I kind of got to achieve that dream, working to protect our oceans while helping people at the same time…but I still wish I had superpowers.
My favorite books, movies, or podcasts: Favorite books: The Foundation series by Isaac Asimov and Rama series by Arthur C. Clarke – the very best of science fiction!
Favorite movies: It depends – I will watch anything from the Star Wars universe, but the two films I was most moved by were Schindler’s List and The Shawshank Redemption, which I could watch over and over.
Favorite podcast: Factually with Adam Conover.
