Allison Fundis

Allison Fundis has spent much of the last 15 years at the bottom of the ocean, exploring and studying shipwrecks, underwater volcanoes, unique ecosystems, and even searching for Amelia Earhart’s airplane. Her work has taken her to remote stretches of the world, where she has led or participated in more than 50 expeditions at sea. As the Chief Operating Officer for the Ocean Exploration Trust, Allison now leads a team of talented scientists, engineers, educators, and communicators to conduct annual missions aboard the exploration vessel Nautilus.

Before joining the Ocean Exploration Trust in 2013, Allison worked with the National Science Foundation’s Ocean Observatories Initiative at the University of Washington. In her role there, she participated in the planning and installation of the US’s largest cabled seafloor observatory. She is a former USN high school chemistry and biology teacher and remains passionate about making authentic opportunities in STEM available to students, educators, and the public through the Ocean Exploration Trust.

Allison holds an MS degree in Marine Geology from the University of Florida and a BA in Human Ecology from the College of the Atlantic. Her geological studies focused on understanding the controls on eruption dynamics in submarine volcanic systems. In 2019, Allison was recognized as an innovation and technology delegate for the Academy of Achievement and as an IF/THEN ambassador by the American Association for the Advancement of Science. She is a 2020 Fellow National of the Explorers Club.