David Lort-Phillips shares ancestry with John Lort Stokes, the mate and surveyor during the 1831-36 voyage, and went on to command HMS Beagle during subsequent surveying voyage to western Australial. David is a director of the Darwin Centre for Biology and Medicine in Wales and has a strong interest in science, evolution and the work of John Lort-Stoke. David recently spent a month in Australia researching sources on the Lort-Stokes' surveying trip to the western coast on HMS Beagle's third surveying voyage, experiences recorded in his book 'Discoveries in Australia' available as an ebook here.

Peter McGrath read zoology at Liverpool University. There he studied the history of the idea of evolution taught by Professor A.J.Cain, which sparked a deep interest in Darwin's work. Peter, an author and RYA Commercial Yachtmaster, spent three years working for the youth sail training boat James Cook, and in 2006 was staff skipper of the Ocean Youth Trust Ireland ketch Four Sisters.

Dr Karen James (director of science, alias nunatak) works full time at the Natural History Museum in London doing original research in the Department of Botany.

Her research emphases are DNA based identification of organisms (“DNA barcoding”) and Diversity Arrays Technology (DArT) , a whole-genome technique for detecting genetic and epigenetic variation in non-model organisms.  In a second role, she identifies and supports science-led projects for the NHM Darwin200 campaign in all five NHM science departments (Botany, Entomology, Mineralogy, Palaeontology and Zoology) with the aim of both celebrating and doing original, question-driven scientific research

Bob Clarke: Bob is a chemical engineer by profession, a former oil company executive and now Chairman of Milford Haven Port Authority. Milford Haven is currently the fifth largest port in the UK, but with the increasing imports of liquid natural gas will soon be the second largest. Bob is a supporter of the Jubilee Sailing Trust.

Peter Davies OBE: Vice Chair (Wales) of the UK Sustainable Development Commission. Other responsibilities include coordinating the Prince of Wales’ charities and being chair of the West Wales branch of the Institute of Welsh Affairs. Peter’s background is in the field of corporate social responsibility working for the Confederation of British Industry, Department of Trade and Industry and Business in the Community. Peter was Managing Director at Business in the Community UK from 1995 to 2005 and retains a role as Associate Director

Stacey Klaman studied agronomy, biology, and English Literature. She has 18 years of educational publishing experience specializing in social studies and science. She has written for Scholastic and National Geographic School Publishing. Ever since reading The Voyage of the Beagle, Stacey, an amateur naturalist, has dreamed about reconstructing the Beagle and retracing Darwin’s journey with an all-women crew. A native New Yorker, Stacey now lives in San Diego where she is the Director of Publishing for Sally Ride Science.

John Lloyd company secretary. John was reposonsible for bringing the Cutty Sark Tall Ships Race to Milford Haven and is a member of the Tall Ships Trust Wales, which provides bursaries to allow Welsh young people to engage in watersports and sail training.

Sir David Mansel Lewis is Chairman of the Tall Ships Trust Wales and West Wales Maritime Heritage Society, a former Lord Lieutanant and current owner of a Hillyard ketch.