Angelika Brandt is a marine biologist at Goethe University Frankfurt am Main and, until recently, headed the Department of Marine Zoology at the Senckenberg Society for Nature Research, where she remains active. Her work focuses on the diversity of life in the deep sea. Her research highlights just how little we know about the deep sea and what a vast treasure trove of diverse marine life we must preserve there. She has received numerous awards for her scientific achievements and her commitment to communicating scientific findings in an accessible way. In recognition of her outstanding scientific achievements in deep-sea biological research, Angelika Brandt will receive the German Ocean Award of the Petersen Foundation on November 5, 2026.

Boris Herrmann became the first German to complete the Vendée Globe in 2020. In 2024, he will once again participate in the non-stop single-handed race around the world. In 2023, he and his team took part in the Ocean Race with their Malizia - Seaexplorer – with a spectacular fly-by in the Kiel Fjord. In May 2024, Boris Herrmann was second in New York after the transatlantic race The Transat CIC. He also recently finished the New York Vendée return race to Les Sables d’Olonne in a celebrated second place. He has been awarded the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany. In recognition of his engagement as an ambassador for the ocean and for communicating marine research topics to the general public, Boris Herrmann receives at 19.06.2024 the German Ocean Award of the Petersen Foundation. ► More