Stefan Aarninkhof is a professor of Hydraulic Engineering at Delft University of Technology. He holds the chair of Coastal Engineering, which focuses on research, education and valorisation in the field of coastal and estuarine dynamics, monitoring and modelling of nearshore processes and engineering design of man-induced interventions such as nourishments, land reclamations and breakwaters. Stefan (H-Index 22, Google Scholar) has a distinct research interest in the development of multi-disciplinary design guidance for marine infrastructure projects based on the concept of Building with Nature, to enable broad implementation of nature-based solutions in daily engineering and management practice. He is a member of the Steering Group Sand Engine and envisaged chairman of the Dutch Expertise Network Coast (ENW-Coast). Throughout his 20 year career in the water sector, Stefan was closely involved in the execution, programming and management of applied coastal research, always at the interface of science, engineering and design. In 2006, Stefan changed position to the dredging industry and joined Boskalis, where he worked on a variety of projects worldwide, including the Khalifa Port and Coastal Zone project (UAE) and the Zandmotor (NL). He subsequently held the position of program manager and member of the Management Team of the EcoShape | Building with Nature program for several years. Until June 1st (2016), Stefan was deputy manager of Hydronamic, the in-house engineering department of Boskalis. In that capacity, he was, amongst others, responsible for the Environmental Engineering, Morphology and Metocean/Data Engineering groups.