Koen Verbruggen

Biography

Mr Verbruggen is the Director of Geological Survey Ireland (GSI). He has been with GSI since 2000, working in Minerals and then Information Management where he developed GSI’s free digital data online policy. From 2006 to 2013 he managed INFOMAR (Integrated Mapping for Sustainable Development of Irelands Marine Resource), the Irish national marine mapping programme run in conjunction with the Marine Institute, which is acknowledged as a global exemplar programme. In 2013, he became Director of the GSI and was elected President of EuroGeoSurveys, the organisation which represents all European Geological Surveys, from 2015-2016. Prior to the GSI, Mr Verbruggen worked for 15 years in the international exploration industry, principally in the minerals sector in Ireland, Canada, Australia, Mexico and Africa. He holds a BSc in Geology and MSc in Petroleum Geology from University College Dublin. He is a long term Professional Member of the Institute of Geologists of Ireland (P.Geo) and the European Federation of Geologists (EFG). In 2018, Koen was admitted as a Member of the Royal Irish Academy (MRIA).