Rehab Elshanawany,^1,*,** Karin Zonneveld,^1,*** Mohamed I. Ibrahim,^2,**** Suzan E.A. Kholeif<sup>3,*****

1</sup>aDepartment of Geosciences, University of Bremen, Klagenfurter Strasse, D-28359 Bremen, Germany
²bFaculty of Science, Baghdad St. Moharam Bey 21511, Alexandria University, Egypt
³cNational Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries (NIOF), Qayed Bay, Alexandria, Egypt

^*Corresponding author. Email: s_peaedc@uni-bremen.de
^**REHAB ELSHANAWANY is currently a Ph.D. student at Bremen University, Germany. She is working on recent organic-walled dinoflagellate cysts from the Mediterranean Sea. Her research interest is using the microfossil assemblages (dinoflagellate cysts and benthic foraminifera) as proxies to reconstruct anthropogenic induced eutrophication of marginal Eastern Mediterranean Basins with special emphasis on some polluted area such as the Abu-Qir Bay (Alexandria, Egypt), and the Po River (Italy).
^***KARIN ZONNEVELD started her palynological education at Utrecht University. After a one-year research visit to the Laboratory of Barrie Dale where she studied cyst—theca relationships of dinoflagellate cysts, she carried out her Ph.D. at Utrecht University. Here she established land—sea correlations based on late deglacial Mediterranean and Indian Ocean pollen/spore and dinoflagellate cyst associations. Since 2003 she has led the Palynological Department within the Group of Historical Geology/ Palaeontology at Bremen University. The research of her Group focuses on the use of palynomorphs and calcareous dinoflagellate cysts for palaeoenvironmental and palaeoclimatic studies. Main research themes include:determination of the (palaeo-)ecology of dinoflagellate cystsstable oxygen isotopes and elemental composition of calcareous dinoflagellate cysts in relationship to environmentselective preservation of palynomorphs/organic matter degradation and its use in palaeoenvironmental studies.
^****MOHAMED I.A. IBRAHIM is a Professor of Palynology and Applied Micropaleontology in the Department of Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science at Alexandria University, Egypt. He has an M.Sc. (1986) in palynology and micropalaeontology from Alexandria University. He obtained his Ph.D. in palynology, micropalaeontology and palaeoenvironment in 1993 from the University of Alexandria and the Technical University of Berlin through a combined channel program. He taught palynology, micropalaeontology, and palaeoenvironment from 1993 to 1995 at the Geology Department of Alexandria University and was a part-time palynostratigraphic consultant for GEOEX-Egypt. Mohamed was seconded to the Geology Department, College of Science, Qatar University from 1996 to mid-2002. He is the author of about 40 research articles on palynology, micropalaeontology, and palaeoecology of Egypt, Libya, Qatar, and Kuwait. He was the National Coordinator and Member of the IGCP 381 “South Atlantic Mesozoic Correlation” and member of AASP, BMS, GSE, EPS, and ESQUA. In 2003, he was awarded the Alexandria University Scientific Prize in Geological Sciences and in 2004; he was awarded the State of Egypt Prize in Geological Sciences. He is now the Vice-Dean for Community Development and Environment Affairs, Faculty of Science, Alexandria University.
^*****SUZAN E.A. KHOLEIF is an Assistant Professor of palynology, palaeoenvironment and palaeoclimate in the Marine Geology department of the Institute of Oceanography and Fisheries (NIOF), Alexandria, Egypt; she is also Director of the Scientific Documentation and Media Center, NIOF. In 1999, she received her Ph.D. in Geology (Palynology) from Cairo University, following her 1989 M.Sc. in Geology (Palynology) degree from Mansoura University (in the middle Nile Delta) and her B.Sc. Geology studies at Alexandria University. Her research interests are the study of pollen, spores, and dinoflagellate cysts in the ancient (Jurassic — Pleistocene) and recent sediments to determine species richness and diversity, and to record changes in palaeovegetation, palaeoclimate, sediment age, and sea level changes. She also studies the thermal maturity of the sediments; kerogen type, quality and quantity of the organic matter in the ancient sediments, and monitors pollution in recent coastal environments. She contributes to the study of deep marine environments using Remotely Operating Vehicles (ROV), and is currently investigator of an international project to assess and predict changes in the Mediterranean and Black Seas ecosystems as part of the European Commission program “Southern European Seas: Assessment and Modelling the changes in Ecosystems”. Suzan was also co-PI of a joint project with Chevron Overseas Petroleum Ltd and SARC (Qatar) studying the “Palynostratigraphy, paleoecology and Organic thermal maturity of the Lower — Middle Jurassic sequences in Qatar”, and she participated in the IGCP 831 program on “South Atlantic Mesozoic Correlation”. Currently she is a PI in a French— Egyptian (CNRS & NIOF) international project studying “Quaternary Climate Fluctuations Study on the Nile Continental Margin and the Mediterranean Nile Deep Sea Fan”.