PhD in Geology and Physical Oceanography (Louisiana State University). He was the Dean of the Faculty of Geosciences at Texas A&M University. At the present he is the President of the World Maritime University (under the United Nations Organization and the International Maritime Organization) in Sweden. He is one of the world experts in the hydrodynamics of tropical lagoons and physical currents in the Western Caribbean Sea, as well as an expert on coastal and marine ecosystems (mangroves, segrasses and coral reefs) of the Caribbean. He was Co-Director of the CARICOMP Program (Monitoring of Caribbean Coastal Ecosystems) in which 25 countries participated. He has published10 books, 182 scientific research papers and served as supervisor/mentor to more than 30 PhD and MSc students.