Igor S. Zonn is a full member of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, Honored Meliorator of the Russian Federation, and General Director of the Engineering Research and Production Center for Land Reclamation, Water Management and Ecology “Soyuzvodproekt” (Moscow). He holds a Ph.D. in Geography, and is also the founder and Editor-in-Chief (since 1996) of the magazine “The Caspian Sea Bulletin”. He has authored over 450 scientific articles and 50 monographs, and also the encyclopedias of the Black, Caspian, Aral, Japan, Okhotsk, Bering, Barents, White, Kara, Laptev, East Siberian, Chukchi, Baltic, Adriatic, Ionian seas, Arctic Ocean and Danube River, published in 2004-2020 by "International Relations" (Russia) and "Springer" (Germany).Sergey S. Zhiltsov is the Head of the Department of Political Science and Political Philosophy of the Diplomatic Academy of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia. He holds a Ph.D. in Political Sciences and his scientific interests comprise foreign and domestic policies of the post-Soviet countries, problems of regional integration in Central Asia and the South Caucasus, foreign and domestic policies of Ukraine and Moldova. He has authored and co-authored more than 40 scientific articles and 10 monographs on various problems of the Caspian Region, published in Russia and by Springer (Germany), including “Geopolitics of the Caspian Region” (2003), “New Caspian Sea” (2008), “Caspian Pipeline Geopolitics” (2011), “Caspian Sea. Encyclopedia”(2015), “Oil and Gas Pipelines in the Black-Caspian Seas Region” (2016), “Caspian Region: Politics, Economy, Cooperation”(2017), “Russia’s Policy in the Caspian Region” (2019).Andrey G. Kostianoy is the Chief Scientist at the P.P. Shirshov Institute of Oceanology of the Russian Academy of Sciences (Moscow, Russia), and is also a Visiting Professor at the University of Liege (Belgium), and Honorary Professor of Tver State University (Russia). He holds aPh.D. in Physico-Mathematical Sciences, and he is a specialist in physical oceanography and satellite remote sensing. His research has focused on satellite monitoring, oceanography, regional climate change and environmental problems of the Black, Caspian, Aral, and Baltic seas. He is Editor-in-Chief of “The Handbook of Environmental Chemistry” and “Springer Water” book series published by Springer (Germany), and of the “Journal of Oceanological Research” (Russia). He has authored over 300 peer-reviewed papers, authored and/or edited 70 books, including the Encyclopedia of the Black, Caspian, Aral, Japan, Okhotsk, Bering, Barents, White, Kara, Laptev, East Siberian, Chukchi, Baltic, Adriatic, Ionian seas and Arctic Ocean, published in 2006-2020 by "International Relations" (Russia) and "Springer" (Germany).Alexander V. Semenov is the Rector of S.Yu. Witte Moscow University. (Moscow), and Honorary Professor at the Higher School of Finance and Management (Bialystok, Poland). He holds a Ph.D. in Economics, and has authored more than 100 scientific publications, authored and edited 25 books, including the encyclopedia of the White, East Siberian, Baltic, Adriatic, Ionian Seas and the Arctic Ocean, published in 2014-2020 by "International Relations" (Russia) and "Springer" (Germany).
