Thomas Grimm

Biography

I am CEO and President of the Carlsbad Aquafarms, which grows Mediterranean Blue Mussels, Pacific Oysters and Ogo (a culinary seaweed). The company has been in operation since 1990. The farm has developed a secondary line of products for the marine aquaria trade known as “live-feed” that includes microalgae, macroalgae, copepods, amphipods and brine shrimp for aquaria and zoos.  After graduating summa cum laude from the University of Minnesota, I became as a naturalist for the Three Rivers Park District. I was drawn by the park’s mission of environmental stewardship and worked on restoring native plant communities and native wildlife restoration projects. As a naturalist, I guided canoe, Nordic ski trips that extended into the wilderness areas of Minnesota and Canada.  My passion for wildlife conservation led me to produce a documentary film about the Peace Parks movement led by Nelson Mandel and Prince Bernhard. The project was supported by Daimler Benz and National Geographic and narrated by Morgan Freeman.  At National Geographic I organized a Forest Carbon Measurement and Verification workshop, with follow up conferences at NASA and Google Headquarters, attended by forestry and climate scientists. The workshops held lead to the establishment of the Clinton Climate Initiative, which now implements programs focused on reversing deforestation throughout the world. 

Research Interest

 Aquaculture