French MEP Catherine Chabaud will deliver a keynote speech about ocean plastic pollution at next week’s Malta Sustainability Forum Catherine Chabaud, a French journalist and sailor turned MEP, is a member of the European Parliament Intergroup on Seas, Rivers, Islands and Coastal Areas, and one of the main voices advocating for clean oceans today. Chabaud was the first woman to successfully circumnavigate the world solo without stopping, an experience that encouraged her to take an active interest in the protection of the sea after seeing first-hand the incredible amount of plastic polluting it. “I truly enjoyed my first solo races, and that gradually convinced me to set off on this great adventure and to experience being alone at sea for a long time,” Chabaud says. “It was an experience that had a great impact on the rest of my career and taught me a lot of lessons that are still very useful in what I do today.”