David Hammond is a former military seafarer, veteran Royal Marines’ officer and qualified English barrister. He founded Human Rights at Sea (HRAS) in 2013 after witnessing the sheer volume and scale of human rights abuses that take place at sea. David has practical maritime and legal experience having served in the North and South Atlantic Oceans, the Mediterranean, the Indian Ocean, Arabian Gulf and South China Seas. He has worked in challenging environments teaching human rights and international humanitarian law around the world at both State and EU level and has been previously appointed to lead legal positions in and alongside EU Missions. Author and co-author of over 90 civil society publications, reports, and case studies concern human rights abuse at sea, he conceived the Geneva Declaration on Human Rights at Sea launched in Switzerland in March 2022. David is a Member of the Honourable Society of Middle Temple.