Speaker — Neptune Forum 2026
Catherine Chabaud
Ministre déléguée chargée de la Mer et de la Pêche
Minister for the Sea and Fisheries, France
Catherine Chabaud has served as Minister for the Sea and Fisheries since October 2025. After studying applied mathematics at Paris-Dauphine and graduating from the Institut Pratique de Journalisme in 1983, she began her career as a journalist in the print and radio press. She then devoted twelve years to offshore sailing, completing sixteen Atlantic crossings, several circumnavigations of Europe, and two round-the-world voyages. In 1997, she became the first woman to finish the Vendée Globe. She subsequently presented adventure programmes on Europe 1 and directed documentaries on sustainable development for France Télévisions. Committed to ocean protection, she led several missions from 2008 onwards relating to sustainable boating and the Grenelle de la mer environmental consultation. A member of the Economic, Social and Environmental Council from 2010 to 2015, she co-founded the Ocean & Climate Platform and became its Delegate for the Sea and the Coast. A Member of the European Parliament from 2019 to 2024, she joined the Académie de marine and the Institut français de la mer in 2024 before becoming President of the Yacht Club de France in 2025.
