Profile Category: Ambassador

Joe Urban is a seasoned professional with over three decades of experience in the commercial and non-commercial food service segments.

Gardner Douglas is known as the “The Oyster Ninja” and is a professional and nationally ranked oyster shucker.

Emily De Sousa is a Portuguese-Canadian fisheries scientist and digital strategy consultant for values-based seafood businesses. She combines her scientific background in fisheries with her expertise in social marketing and digital communication to provide strategic consulting services to stakeholders in the seafood world who share her passion for sustainability.

Andrew Gruel serves as the Founder and Executive Chef of Slapfish Restaurant and is a leader in sustainable seafood.

Julie Qiu is an international oyster expert and founder of In A Half Shell , an oyster appreciation website that was recognized as one of Fathom Away’s “Top Travel Blogs of 2015” and SAVEUR’s “Sites We Love.”

Barton Seaver’s work as a celebrated chef, sustainability advocate, public health educator, and prolific writer has given him technical expertise in, developed personal relationships within, and acquired systemic knowledge of all of the processes by which a fish in water becomes seafood on a plate.

Heather Tallman is an Indianapolis-based food personality and family meal advocate, food writer, blogger, newspaper columnist and freelance writer.

Chef Ben Smith is a great supporter of the importance of seafood nutrition. His Tsunami Restaurant has been voted Best New Restaurant, Best Seafood, and Most Creative Menu.

Michael-Ann is an Emmy Award-winning food & travel journalist for her three-part documentary series, Off the Beaten Palate. She is the host of a seafood web cooking series, Put Your Best Fish Forward. Known as the Fishionista, Michael-Ann teaches viewers how to buy, cook and enjoy seafood.

Indianapolis’ sustainable seafood pioneer, Chef Ryan Nelson’s knowledge and dedication to ecologically sound food practices have gained him national recognition.