Sven, originally from Memmingen, Germany, completed his PhD at ICTA-UAB. His research focused on using skeletal remains to reconstruct past changes in marine ecosystems, particularly in the Mediterranean Sea, to understand the impact of anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions and unsustainable exploitation of coastal resources. Supervised by Patrizia Ziveri and Graham Mortyn, his work aimed to distinguish human influence from natural variability in marine ecosystems under accelerated climate change. Sven's academic journey included studies in Geography at Heidelberg University, a master's at Autonomous University of Barcelona, and a marine geosciences master's at Bremen University.