The National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine Building

2101 Constitution Ave NW, Washington, DC 20418

Call to Order and Conference Welcome
Rear Admiral James A. Watson (USCG-Ret.), Chair of the Conference Planning Committee

Opening Remarks
Ashley Chappell, Executive Director, US Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS)

Living Room Session - Federal and Industry Perspectives on Marine Safety and Security:  What Keeps You Up at Night?
Moderated by Rear Admiral James A. Watson (USCG-RET.)

• Vice Admiral Peter Gautier, Acting Vice Commandant, U.S. Coast Guard

• Ted Tregurtha, President & CEO, Moran Towing

• Charles (Bud) Darr, President and CEO, Cruise Lines International Association

• Sara Fuentes, Vice President, Government Affairs, Transportation Institute

• Rear Admiral Ben Evans, Director, Office of Coast Survey, NOAA

Plenary Session - Innovative Approaches for Emerging Security, Safety and Resiliency Concerns
Moderated by Rear Admiral John Nadeau (USCG-Ret.)

The maritime industry is rapidly adopting innovative technologies including innovative power systems, increased automation, and autonomous operations which often outpace safety regulations. Key concerns include ensuring operational technology cybersecurity, potential threat vectors from unvetted technology and equipment providers, and potential new hazards that present with the adoption of innovative technologies.  Innovative technologies also offer new compliance and enforcement opportunities, such as employing digital twins and digitalization. This session will explore emerging regulatory compliance and enforcement challenges and opportunities as well as innovative approaches to ensure safety, security, and resiliency in the maritime industry due to these advancements.

• Eric Christensen, Director of Regulatory Affairs and Risk Management, Passenger Vessel Association

• Alex Soukhanov, Partner and Owner, True North Group LLC

• David Walker, Vice President for Global Government Services, American Bureau of Shipping
• Captain Rob Compher, Chief, Traveling Inspections, U.S. Coast Guard

Student Honor Panel
Moderated by Rear Admiral James A. Watson (USCG-Ret.)

• The Invisible Crew: How AI is Reshaping Maritime Workforces and Global Training Standards
  Orkhan Khalilov, Texas Southern University

• Adaptive AI-Agent for Marine Freight Routing and Scheduling 
  Niping Duan, University of Maryland

• Enhancing Safety, Infrastructure, and Intermodal Connectivity in Inland Waterway and Marine Freight Transport 
  Juana Jaramillo-Rios, University of Missouri - St. Louis

Afternoon Break

Plenary Session - Marine Transportation System (MTS) Operational and Economic Resilience – Part I
Moderated by Ashley Chappell, Executive Director, U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS)

This “living-room style” session will seek to frame the trends, needs, and issues facing the marine transportation system related to infrastructure and operations in times of disruption.  Panelists will engage in a moderated conversation and offer their unique perspectives on how data, technology, and innovation have helped with past disruptions and can help prepare for and respond to future disruptive events.

• Anne Strauss-Wieder, Lecturer, Rutgers University

• Brian Tetreault, Navigation Program Manager, Woolpert

• Patricia DiJoseph, Port Performance Program Manager, U.S. Department of Transportation

Plenary Session - Marine Transportation System (MTS) Operational and Economic Resilience: Part II
Moderated by Dr. Amit Mokashi, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy

This session will examine the impacts of larger vessels, power systems, and innovations in cargo handling on system capacity, operational efficiency, safety and security. Key aspects for discussion will include risk assessment methodologies, emergency response protocols, and education and training needs and capacities.

• Dr. Jan Hoffmann, Global Practice Manager, The World Bank

• Cameron Humphrey, Director of Maritime and Industrial Capacity, National Security Council

• Vesa Koivumaa, Head of Strategic Growth, Voyage Services, Wärtsilä

Concurrent Technical Breakout Sessions I

Session 1A: Maritime Safety and Security
Moderated by Dr. Amit Mokashi, U.S. Merchant Marine Academy

• Saving Lives and Livelihoods from Unanticipated Weather at Sea 
  Catherine Lawson, University of Albany

• Disposable Low-Cost USVs in Support of Disaster Response 
  Anthony Mulligan, Hydronalix Inc

• Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Optimize Search Effectiveness 
  Matthew Mitchell, Zelim LLC.

• How an Advanced Pilot Assist System (APAS) enhances safety and resilience within the Marine Transportation System (MTS) 
  Dylan Sparks, Mythos AI

Session 1B: Marine Transportation System Operational and Economic Resilience
Moderated by Ned Moran, Moran Towing

• Navigation Channel Bridges–A Crosswalk to Port Resiliency
  Nubia Del Carpio, Bureau of Transportation Statistics

• Unlocking the Potential of Domestic Container Transportation: A case study for Jones Act Feeder Container Ships 
  Aswin Janardhanan, Vessel Docker Inc.

• Play It Again: New Dimensions in Port & Inland Waterways Digital Incident Reconstruction Tools and Navigation Safety Risk Assessment 
  Phil Thompson, BMT Global

• Voyage Planning and Risk Management in Arctic Shipping
  Ashok Pandey, Massachusetts Maritime Academy

Session 1C: Data Integration and Artificial Intelligence
Moderated by Patricia McKee, U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS)

• Application of Large Language Models (LLMs) to Improve Handling of Disruptions and Exceptions in Maritime Transportation
  Ricardo Ungo, Old Dominion University

• Modernizing Ship Manifest Data Exchange for a Resilient Marine Transportation System 
  Dominic Thomas, Kennesaw State University

Keynote: Cybersecurity in Maritime

Rear Admiral John W. Mauger (USCG-Ret.) Former Director, Joint Training and Exercises (J7), U.S. Cyber Command (2018 to 2020) and Former Assistant Commandant for Prevention Policy (2021-2022)

Concurrent Technical Breakout Sessions II

Session 2A: Maritime Safety and Security II
Moderated by Ashley Chappell, U.S. Committee on the Marine Transportation System (CMTS)

• Advanced Nuclear Technologies for Commercial Marine Applications
  Mayir Mamtimin, ABS

• Use of AI to enhance Shipboard Training for Cadets
  Amit Mokashi, United States Merchant Marine Academy

• Modernizing Maritime Credentialing: How MM-SEAS USCG Licensing Software is Redefining Access and Efficiency
  Nate Gilman, MM-SEAS USCG Licensing Software

• Small Modular Reactors for Use on Ships
  Blake Giannamore,  United States Merchant Marine Academy

Session 2B: Maritime Transportation System Operational and Economic Resilience II
Moderated by Daniel Hackett, Hackett Associates 

• Introducing Empirical Predictive Modeling for Vulnerability and Risk Assessment
  Yi Victor Wang, Massachusetts Maritime Academy

• Chaos Ready Resources in the Maritime Space: Leveraging Existing Assets in Contingency Planning and Response
  Chad Fuhrmann, Chaos Ready Inc.

• OpenEar: Enhancing Maritime Security and Resilience Through Advanced Acoustic AI Detection
  Kim Gavin and Rob McGurrin, BLUEiQ

• Resiliency of Maritime Operations Including Energy and Technology Supply Chains
  Christopher Kolodziej, Argonne National Laboratory

Plenary Session: All Hazards Approach to Emergency Response Planning and Training for Ports
Moderated by Andrea Williams, Maryland Port Administration

The panel will discuss emergency response planning and training needed for Ports from an all-hazards approach. Panel will detail and discuss proactive considerations, techniques and trainings needed for Ports to respond to the various levels of hazards and threats they may face.  Key areas of discussion include accessibility issues for Fire Departments, port infrastructure needs, ensuring land-based fire fighters have access to techniques, equipment and training, multi-agency coordination efforts, regular training and drills, and Port responsibility/command and control (authority, responsibility, decision-making, and leadership) all while considering the unique characteristics of the port environment and its workforce.

• Bill Burket, Senior Director, MIRT and Business Continuity, Port of Virginia
• Danielle Hale, Director of Emergency Management, Port of Corpus Christi
• Captain Steve Czawlytko, Baltimore County, Maryland Fire Department

Conference Closing Session

This open forum interactive session will bring forward the key maritime innovative science and technology concepts, research needs, and lessons learned identified during the conference for future consideration and R&D activity.