Future of Ships, Shipping and Environmental Sustainability Conference

Professor Ralph Rayner FIMarEST

Professorial Research Fellow, Grantham Research Institute and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Co-chair IMarEST Operational Oceanography SIG

Ralph is a Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of Statistics at LSE as well as holding a position with The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  He is a fellow of the Institute for Marine Engineering, Science and Technology, the Society for Underwater Technology, the Marine technology Society, the Royal Meteorological Society and the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Ralph’s academic background is in ocean science and technology.  Throughout his career he has worked at the interface between the public and private sectors in meeting the need for monitoring of the ocean environment in support of understanding climate change, the use of ocean resources and the protection of the marine environment.  He is a former chair of the IOC/UNESCO Global Ocean Observing System Steering Committee and currently serves on the advisory bodies of a number on leading ocean science research organisations, including Plymouth Marine Laboratory and the Schmidt Ocean Institute.  He is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Operational Oceanography and is a founding trustee of the Rising Seas Institute.

Professor Ralph Rayner FIMarEST

Professorial Research Fellow, Grantham Research Institute and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Co-chair IMarEST Operational Oceanography SIG

Ralph is a Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of Statistics at LSE as well as holding a position with The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  He is a fellow of the Institute for Marine Engineering, Science and Technology, the Society for Underwater Technology, the Marine technology Society, the Royal Meteorological Society and the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Ralph’s academic background is in ocean science and technology.  Throughout his career he has worked at the interface between the public and private sectors in meeting the need for monitoring of the ocean environment in support of understanding climate change, the use of ocean resources and the protection of the marine environment.  He is a former chair of the IOC/UNESCO Global Ocean Observing System Steering Committee and currently serves on the advisory bodies of a number on leading ocean science research organisations, including Plymouth Marine Laboratory and the Schmidt Ocean Institute.  He is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Operational Oceanography and is a founding trustee of the Rising Seas Institute.

Dr Richard Bucknall

Head of Department for Mechanical Engineering, UCL, Maritime Research and Innovation UK

Professor Richard Bucknall’s career has been spent in the marine industry and academia.  He began his career at BP Shipping and subsequently with Ministry of Defence before joining UCL as a Research Fellow.  At UCL he led the Marine Research Group (2008-2014), became Director of Research for Mechanical Engineering (2014-2019), Vice Dean for Research (2019-2023) and Head of Department for Mechanical Engineering (2022-now).  His research focus has spanned several areas of maritime engineering science but more recently decarbonisation of the maritime sector.  He has graduated 28 PhD students from across the world, has over 250 published articles, and has been awarded the IMAREST Danny Medal twice.  He is an honorary member of the Royal Corps of Naval Constructors, past editor in chief of the Journal of Marine Engineering and Technology, and is currently a Visiting Professor at three internationally leading universities.

Claudene Sharp-Patel CMarTech FIMarEST

Global Technical Director, Marine and Offshore, Lloyds Register

Claudene joined the marine industry over 30 years ago, having wide experience in maritime, shipping, salvage/MCI, upstream oil and Gas, and wind installation/MWS, Terminal operations, assurance and Oil and Gas/renewable industries in various roles and senior management positions. Claudene started her career as a sea-going Marine Engineering with BHP on dry-bulk carriers, ROROs, Container Vessels and Chemical tankers, transferring onto Oil and LNG vessels with Shell UK and primarily with BP Shipping. However, never one to stop during leave periods continued building experience on General cargo vessels and passenger ships.  Although holding a Bachelor of Technology (Marine Engineering) and Combined Chief Engineer (Motor and Steam), Claudene continued studying obtaining an MBA in Maritime Law and Logistics Management. 

Although Claudene’s background is technical, her training in her shore career in Shipping companies and energy companies support the understanding of shipping, terminal operations/activities and marine activities, has assisted seeing these operations holistically and impactfully.  Claudene’s more recent roles as Global Technical Director Lloyd’s Register, and Shell Australia Prelude (Prelude Marine Terminal Coordinator) further adds to her understanding of current Marine and Offshore roles, activities and operations.  Claudene’s current role as Global Technical Director for Lloyds Register allows an input in the strategy and technical requirements for the industry both legislated or required through IMO/IACS and supporting customers and the industry find safe technical solutions within Decarbonisation, Digitalisation, Marine safety assurance and Offshore Safety Assurance.

Claudene is a Fellow of IMarEST and served for 6 years as Vice President and culminating as Vice Chair of Technical Leadership Board of IMarEST.  Claudene was previously a registered consultant to IMO, and has been continuously active within OCIMF in several groups/working groups including Representative at GPC, Vice Chairman of OCIMF Technical Group, and member of SIRE Focus Group.  These experiences bringing a wide understanding of incidents, consequences, legislation, regulations and implementation.

Dr Lucy Gillam

Transdisciplinary researcher on Resilient Delta Clean Fuels for Shipping project,

Dr Lucy Gilliam: For over 20 years, Dr Lucy Gilliam has been immersed in environmental science and policy, specializing in science-based policies and impactful campaigns from governmental, research, and NGO perspectives. Her expertise includes international transport, ocean governance, and ecosystem-based management, particularly in the shipping and aviation sectors. She has worked with NGOs like Transport & Environment and Seas at Risk on EU and IMO shipping policies, contributed to decarbonizing maritime activities, and participated in international UN meetings. Currently, Lucy consults on the Clean Fuels for shipping project within the Resilient Delta program at TU Delft and Erasmus University.

Dr Lucy Gillam

Transdisciplinary researcher on Resilient Delta Clean Fuels for Shipping project,

Dr Lucy Gilliam: For over 20 years, Dr Lucy Gilliam has been immersed in environmental science and policy, specializing in science-based policies and impactful campaigns from governmental, research, and NGO perspectives. Her expertise includes international transport, ocean governance, and ecosystem-based management, particularly in the shipping and aviation sectors. She has worked with NGOs like Transport & Environment and Seas at Risk on EU and IMO shipping policies, contributed to decarbonizing maritime activities, and participated in international UN meetings. Currently, Lucy consults on the Clean Fuels for shipping project within the Resilient Delta program at TU Delft and Erasmus University.

Reece Oliver MIMarEST

Experimentation Plans Team Leader, NavyX, Royal Navy

Reece is a chartered marine engineer who is employed as NavyX’s experimentation planning and project team lead. He has a MSc in Marine Engineering, a career that started as a sea going marine engineering officer before moving ashore working at Wartsila later moving to Lloyds Register in the engineering systems team. Areas of interest include alternative fuels, marine autonomy and the application of novel technology for the maritime.

Tobi Menzies

Director - Business Development, Core Power Energy

No bio provided

Jake Rigby

Global Head of Innovation and Research, BMT

Jake Rigby is the Global Head of Innovation and Research at BMT, responsible for the portfolio management of internal research projects. He is a chartered engineer and Member of the Royal Institute of Naval Architects originally training as a Naval Architect specialising in ship signatures before his current role in Research and Development. Jake is also responsible for Academic Engagement at BMT. In recognition of his work to progress Academic Engagement in the maritime sector he was recently awarded the title of Honorary Associate Professor at the University of Exeter.

Sander Klaasse

Product Sales Manager (TechSIm), Wartsila - Voyage Services

Education:    Maritime Officer - Deck & Engine

Titles:            Marine Engineer & Master Mariner

Industries:    Maritime Shipping/ Maritime Simulation & Training

Experience:  15 years seagoing / 5 years shoreside

Segments:    Container/Cruise/Simulation & Training

Companies:  P&O Nedlloyd/ Maersk Line/Carnival Corporation/ Simwave/ Wärtsilä

Broadly experienced Maritime Professional within maritime industry with extensive global experience.

Master Mariner & Marine Engineer with capacity of efficient decision making, driving change and developments for the future maritime generations to come. 

- Market overview & movement on Future Fuels & new Technologies.

- Digitalization, Decarbonization & Education.

- Contributing to simulation as predictive tool through R&D.

- Implementing new fuel & decarb technologies and solutions.

- Nautical & Technical operations and innovation.

- Supporting Industrial Revolution and technical innovations.

- Develop support systems for better decisions making.

- Applying bow-tie Risk Assessments methodology.

- Specialised in Maritime Simulator Training. 

- Providing effective communication and didactical skills to perform in the modern technological maritime environment.

- Identifying Human, Technical & Organizational breakdown on maritime challenges & solutions.

- Marine Engineering (Dry dockings & refits)

- Maintenance | Fuel saving, Energy Transition & Waste Heat Recovery Systems, compliance, safety, security and environmental procedures (ISM) and Polar expedition operations (COP). 

Dr Andrea Coraddu

Associate Professor, TU Delft

No bio provided

Mohammad Hoque

Fleet Manager (Technical), Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics

Mohammad is a seasoned Fleet Manager (Technical) with a wealth of experience in Marine Operations Management. Currently based at the Southampton office of Wallenius Wilhelmsen Ocean, they oversee a diverse portfolio with key focuses on Fleet Technical Management, BioFuel Rollout, EU ETS Compliance, and Dry Docking Management.

With a robust educational background, Mohammad holds the title of Chartered Engineer from the Engineering Council UK and Chartered Marine Engineer from the Institute of Marine Engineering Science & Technology. They earned their Master of Science (MSc) degree in Maritime Operation and Management from City University London. Additionally, they possess a COC Class 1 (Unlimited) certification from the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA), UK, and a Marine Engineering Degree from the Marine Academy Chittagong, Bangladesh.

Mohammad's career journey is marked by hands-on experience and progressive leadership roles. They began as a Chief Engineer aboard ocean-going ships from 1995 to 2007 before transitioning into shore-based roles. As a Technical Superintendent at PIL overseeing the container fleet from 2007 to 2011, they honed their expertise in managing vessel operations. Their tenure as Fleet Manager at PIL from 2011 to 2014 further solidified their proficiency in fleet management.

In 2014, Mohammad joined Wilhelmsen Ship Management as a Vessel Manager, responsible for the Ro-Ro fleet, where they excelled in optimizing vessel performance and ensuring operational excellence until 2023. Since then, they have taken on the role of Fleet Manager (Technical) at Wallenius Wilhelmsen, where they continue to drive innovation and efficiency in the Ro-Ro fleet.

Philip Parvin CEng CMarEng FIMarEST

Independent Consultant, Stickleback Solutions Ltd

Paddy Parvin left the Royal Navy in 2022 after nearly 40 years, in the rank of Captain, with his final role as Chief Engineer and Safety Director of the Submarine Force. 

Since then, as a nuclear engineer first and foremost, his efforts have focussed on improving product safety. Other areas of endeavour include sustainability and development of enduring net zero solutions to a wide number of challenges plus, as detailed by the topic of his presentation, the need for enhanced rigour in cybersecurity in the Maritime environment. New threats require new solutions and broader thinking, if our industries are to not only survive but thrive. 

Paddy is an independent consultant trading as Stickleback Solutions Ltd, but is here as a Fellow of IMAREST and Vice- Chair of Council. Financially trained as part of his MBA, Paddy sits on the Finance and Investment Committee. He is committed to CPD, and lectures regularly on various topics in both English and French. 

: padip

Professor Adam Sobey

Program Director, Turing Institute

Professor Adam Sobey is Programme Director of Data-Centric Engineering at The Alan Turing Institute and Professor of Data-Centric Engineering in the Maritime Engineering group at the University of Southampton. He is also a Non-Executive Director at Theyr Ltd, a MetOcean and Voyage Optimisation Software provider, and at AQ, provide tools for Digital Assurance.

He completed his degree in Astronautics at the University of Southampton in 2006 and his PhD in the Maritime Engineering group in 2010 using AI in the design of leisure boats. From 2009 he managed the Lloyd’s Register/Ministry of Defence Centre of Excellence in Marine Structures at Southampton, developing new techniques to model damaged ships. This research was incorporated into Lloyd’s Register’s design guidance and in 2015 he was awarded the Royal Institution of Naval Architect’s Jeom Paik Award for stochastic analysis of ship structures. In 2014 he became a Lloyd’s Register Educational Trust funded Research Fellow with 50% of his time seconded to the Institute of High Performance Computing in Singapore, developing novel algorithms in Evolutionary Computation. In 2015 he was a co-Investigator for the University of Southampton Lloyd’s Register Foundation University Technology Centre in “Ship Design for Enhanced Environmental Performance”. He became a lecturer in the Maritime Engineering group in 2018 and was asked to start a theme in Marine and Maritime within the Data-Centric Engineering programme at The Alan Turing Institute in 2019 with Gabriel Weymouth. He became the first Professor in Data-Centric Engineering in 2022 and Programme Director for Data-Centric Engineering in 2023.

He is an Executive Editor for the Data-Centric Engineering journal and Ships and Offshore Structures. He has generated a range of products from his research, mainly focused on decarbonisation in Shipping.

Kevin Daffey FIMarEST

VP Governmental Engineering, Rolls-Royce Solutions

Kevin Daffey is a Director at Rolls-Royce Solutions UK and Servowatch Systems Ltd, a Chair of Board of Trustees at the IMarEST, a former Chair of the Marine Electrical Control Systems Safety (MECSS) SIG and was the 118^th President for the IMarEST. 

Helen Oldridge CMarEng MIMarEST

Head of Scientific Engineering, National Oceanography Centre

Helen is the National Marine Facilities Head of Scientific Engineering, at the National Oceanography Centre. She is responsible for the operation and development of the National Marine Equipment Pool, the technicians supporting the delivery of the research expedition programme, and co-author of the Technology Roadmap. Her background is in systems and design engineering, with 3 years in the commercial design and manufacturing sector, and 12 years as marine engineer in the Royal Navy

Noel Tomlinson

Global Business Development, BMT

Noel Is responsible for global business development & growth of the commercial maritime sector for leading international design, engineering and risk management consultancy, BMT. He is an active member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST) with over 20 years' experience in the maritime industry, working within both the defence and commercial sectors.

He is Vice Chair of the SMI Commercial Maritime Group Council and Chair of the Workboat Working Group, facilitating growth and development within the UK supply chain for the design, build and upgrade of domestic maritime transport. With a passion for the future of maritime, Noel is active on many industry/government initiatives to grow the UK marine industry and promote safer, cleaner and more fuel-efficient shipping for the future.

Sahan Abeysekara IEng IMarEng MIMarEST

Principal Specialist - Environment, Technical Directorate, Lloyds Register

Sahan is an experience Marine professional with extensive experience on marine environmental technology, marine engineering and marine strategy development. He represents IACS at IMO for Marine Biosecurity.  LR representative to Global Industry Alliance of IMO-GEF-UNDP GloFouling partnership-. Sahan is an author and speaker representing LR in various conferences and workshops. Sahan is leading Environmental policy at Lloyd’s Register’s Technical Directorate. Responsible for strategy and implementation for future environmental regulations, provide ‘thought leadership’ to the industry. He was a senior marine engineer sailing on board ship before join LR. Sahan is a Fellow at Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, Engineering council and member of IMarEST. Sahan holds Master’s degree from City University, London.

Edward Walker

Environmental Specialist, Xodus

Ed is a Marine Energy specialist with specific experience in the assessment, consenting and development of marine-based infrastructure projects, including subsea transmission and offshore wind.

A Chartered Environmentalist, Chartered Marine Technologist and Chartered Water & Environment Manager, Ed has a range of experience supporting the development of marine infrastructure, including several Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects.

Ed’s experience encompasses subsea cables, offshore wind, CCUS, nuclear new build and a range of other coastal energy projects. Ed has experience managing multidisciplinary EIA teams and has led the environmental assessment of several subsea cable projects, as well as a new east coast offshore wind export cable route. Previous experience includes acting as Marine PM for a major new electricity reinforcement between Scotland and England. Alongside this, Ed has client-side experience (this includes acting as marine consents officer for a UK transmission owner on two major subsea cable projects).

Outside of EIA, Ed has experience providing support throughout the project development cycle from feasibility, strategic optioneering and routeing & siting through to consent preparation, submission and post-consent discharge. Prior to working in consultancy, Ed benefits from several years of experience working within a UK marine regulator – the MMO.

Alongside his day-to-day role, Ed is a regional IEMA chair / marine development steering group chair and sits on the regional Energy Institute board. Ed is a regular contributor to professional journals across IEMA, IMarEST, CIWEM and the Energy Institute focusing particularly on marine energy.

Professor Ralph Rayner FIMarEST

Professorial Research Fellow, Grantham Research Institute and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Co-chair IMarEST Operational Oceanography SIG

Ralph is a Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of Statistics at LSE as well as holding a position with The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  He is a fellow of the Institute for Marine Engineering, Science and Technology, the Society for Underwater Technology, the Marine technology Society, the Royal Meteorological Society and the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Ralph’s academic background is in ocean science and technology.  Throughout his career he has worked at the interface between the public and private sectors in meeting the need for monitoring of the ocean environment in support of understanding climate change, the use of ocean resources and the protection of the marine environment.  He is a former chair of the IOC/UNESCO Global Ocean Observing System Steering Committee and currently serves on the advisory bodies of a number on leading ocean science research organisations, including Plymouth Marine Laboratory and the Schmidt Ocean Institute.  He is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Operational Oceanography and is a founding trustee of the Rising Seas Institute.

Professor Ralph Rayner FIMarEST

Professorial Research Fellow, Grantham Research Institute and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Co-chair IMarEST Operational Oceanography SIG

Ralph is a Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of Statistics at LSE as well as holding a position with The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  He is a fellow of the Institute for Marine Engineering, Science and Technology, the Society for Underwater Technology, the Marine technology Society, the Royal Meteorological Society and the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Ralph’s academic background is in ocean science and technology.  Throughout his career he has worked at the interface between the public and private sectors in meeting the need for monitoring of the ocean environment in support of understanding climate change, the use of ocean resources and the protection of the marine environment.  He is a former chair of the IOC/UNESCO Global Ocean Observing System Steering Committee and currently serves on the advisory bodies of a number on leading ocean science research organisations, including Plymouth Marine Laboratory and the Schmidt Ocean Institute.  He is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Operational Oceanography and is a founding trustee of the Rising Seas Institute.

Dr Richard Bucknall

Head of Department for Mechanical Engineering, UCL, Maritime Research and Innovation UK

Professor Richard Bucknall’s career has been spent in the marine industry and academia.  He began his career at BP Shipping and subsequently with Ministry of Defence before joining UCL as a Research Fellow.  At UCL he led the Marine Research Group (2008-2014), became Director of Research for Mechanical Engineering (2014-2019), Vice Dean for Research (2019-2023) and Head of Department for Mechanical Engineering (2022-now).  His research focus has spanned several areas of maritime engineering science but more recently decarbonisation of the maritime sector.  He has graduated 28 PhD students from across the world, has over 250 published articles, and has been awarded the IMAREST Danny Medal twice.  He is an honorary member of the Royal Corps of Naval Constructors, past editor in chief of the Journal of Marine Engineering and Technology, and is currently a Visiting Professor at three internationally leading universities.

Claudene Sharp-Patel CMarTech FIMarEST

Global Technical Director, Marine and Offshore, Lloyds Register

Claudene joined the marine industry over 30 years ago, having wide experience in maritime, shipping, salvage/MCI, upstream oil and Gas, and wind installation/MWS, Terminal operations, assurance and Oil and Gas/renewable industries in various roles and senior management positions. Claudene started her career as a sea-going Marine Engineering with BHP on dry-bulk carriers, ROROs, Container Vessels and Chemical tankers, transferring onto Oil and LNG vessels with Shell UK and primarily with BP Shipping. However, never one to stop during leave periods continued building experience on General cargo vessels and passenger ships.  Although holding a Bachelor of Technology (Marine Engineering) and Combined Chief Engineer (Motor and Steam), Claudene continued studying obtaining an MBA in Maritime Law and Logistics Management. 

Although Claudene’s background is technical, her training in her shore career in Shipping companies and energy companies support the understanding of shipping, terminal operations/activities and marine activities, has assisted seeing these operations holistically and impactfully.  Claudene’s more recent roles as Global Technical Director Lloyd’s Register, and Shell Australia Prelude (Prelude Marine Terminal Coordinator) further adds to her understanding of current Marine and Offshore roles, activities and operations.  Claudene’s current role as Global Technical Director for Lloyds Register allows an input in the strategy and technical requirements for the industry both legislated or required through IMO/IACS and supporting customers and the industry find safe technical solutions within Decarbonisation, Digitalisation, Marine safety assurance and Offshore Safety Assurance.

Claudene is a Fellow of IMarEST and served for 6 years as Vice President and culminating as Vice Chair of Technical Leadership Board of IMarEST.  Claudene was previously a registered consultant to IMO, and has been continuously active within OCIMF in several groups/working groups including Representative at GPC, Vice Chairman of OCIMF Technical Group, and member of SIRE Focus Group.  These experiences bringing a wide understanding of incidents, consequences, legislation, regulations and implementation.

Dr Lucy Gillam

Transdisciplinary researcher on Resilient Delta Clean Fuels for Shipping project,

Dr Lucy Gilliam: For over 20 years, Dr Lucy Gilliam has been immersed in environmental science and policy, specializing in science-based policies and impactful campaigns from governmental, research, and NGO perspectives. Her expertise includes international transport, ocean governance, and ecosystem-based management, particularly in the shipping and aviation sectors. She has worked with NGOs like Transport & Environment and Seas at Risk on EU and IMO shipping policies, contributed to decarbonizing maritime activities, and participated in international UN meetings. Currently, Lucy consults on the Clean Fuels for shipping project within the Resilient Delta program at TU Delft and Erasmus University.

Simon Graves CEng CMarEng BEng(Hons) PGCert MIMarEST

Principal Inspector of Marine Accidents, Marine Accident Investigation Branch

Simon joined the MAIB as an inspector in 2021, transferring from an assistant director role at the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) where he was responsible for technical services (operations). Simon holds an honours degree in engineering from Newcastle University, which he studied for after qualifying as a chief engineer.

After a long career at sea serving on a wide variety of ships, ultimately as chief engineer on cruise ships, Simon joined the MCA as a surveyor. He moved with his family to New Zealand for a position in ship management before joining Maritime New Zealand, dealing with the operational port and flag state aspects of the organisation. Simon returned to the UK, and the MCA, in 2010, where he progressed to a principal surveyor role before promotion to assistant director.

With the arrival of COVID-19 Simon was faced with managing risk while developing and implementing a regulatory framework to keep UK ships trading under the most trying circumstances. He was also part of the multiagency team that developed the roadmap for returning the cruise industry to service after the dark days of the pandemic

Wouter Vuikj

Business Manager Sustainable Transport, Port of Rotterdam

No bio provided

Alan Crowle FIMarEST

Naval Architect, University of Exeter

Alan Crowle is a naval architect studying for a Masters by Research, at the University of Exeter. The focus of the research is into the load-out, fit-out, tow-out and installation of floating offshore wind turbines.

He has 53 years marine engineering experience, in the design, construction and offshore installation of marine structures for oil&gas, LNG terminals and HVDC platforms. He is a fellow of RINA, IMarEST and the Society of Consulting Marine Engineers and Ship Surveyors and a member of the Energy Institute.

Professor John Chudley FIMarEST

Chair, Engineering Council

No bio provided

Alina Prylipko SIMarEST

Lecturer in Sustainable Maritime Operations, MLA College

With over fifteen years of professional experience in the maritime industry, Alina Prylipko has dedicated the last nine years to the field of maritime education, training, and certification. She holds qualifications in international maritime law (LLM) and maritime education and training (MSc), with expertise in curriculum design and development, management of maritime education and training institutions, and education for sustainable development.

Alina has also engaged in academic research on various sustainability aspects, including future-proofing maritime professionals, sustainability of maritime education and training institutions, and integrating education for sustainable development into maritime curricula.

Currently pursuing her doctoral research at the World Maritime University (Malmö, Sweden), Alina focuses on exploring the role of seafarers as stakeholders in achieving social sustainability. Her research endeavors include understanding and defining social sustainability within the maritime industry, as well as scoping the relevant stakeholders involved before delving into the specific role that seafarers play in this context.

Stephen Hall FIMarEST

Head of Partnerships, The Nippon Foundation & GEBCO Seabed 2030

A Chartered Marine Scientist, Fellow of the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology, and Fellow of the Society for Underwater Technology, Steve has worked in global ocean science, technology and policy for over thirty years, in the fields of sustained ocean observing, marine autonomous systems, policy, industry liaison and outreach. He was Head of the UK delegation to UNESCO’s Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission 2013-2017, was elected Vice Chair of IOC 2015-17 and represented IOC at the UN discussions on new governance for areas beyond national jurisdiction. He also led the International Office at the UK’s National Oceanography Centre, served as a tsunami warning national point of contact, and as a policy advisor in areas such as development of the UK’s marine spatial planning system before moving into the private sector in 2017 as CEO for the Society for Underwater Technology, and later as CEO Pembrokeshire Coastal Forum and Marine Energy Wales. He also created the popular ‘Underwater Technology Podcast.'

Professor Adam Sobey

Program Director, Turing Institute

Professor Adam Sobey is Programme Director of Data-Centric Engineering at The Alan Turing Institute and Professor of Data-Centric Engineering in the Maritime Engineering group at the University of Southampton. He is also a Non-Executive Director at Theyr Ltd, a MetOcean and Voyage Optimisation Software provider, and at AQ, provide tools for Digital Assurance.

He completed his degree in Astronautics at the University of Southampton in 2006 and his PhD in the Maritime Engineering group in 2010 using AI in the design of leisure boats. From 2009 he managed the Lloyd’s Register/Ministry of Defence Centre of Excellence in Marine Structures at Southampton, developing new techniques to model damaged ships. This research was incorporated into Lloyd’s Register’s design guidance and in 2015 he was awarded the Royal Institution of Naval Architect’s Jeom Paik Award for stochastic analysis of ship structures. In 2014 he became a Lloyd’s Register Educational Trust funded Research Fellow with 50% of his time seconded to the Institute of High Performance Computing in Singapore, developing novel algorithms in Evolutionary Computation. In 2015 he was a co-Investigator for the University of Southampton Lloyd’s Register Foundation University Technology Centre in “Ship Design for Enhanced Environmental Performance”. He became a lecturer in the Maritime Engineering group in 2018 and was asked to start a theme in Marine and Maritime within the Data-Centric Engineering programme at The Alan Turing Institute in 2019 with Gabriel Weymouth. He became the first Professor in Data-Centric Engineering in 2022 and Programme Director for Data-Centric Engineering in 2023.

He is an Executive Editor for the Data-Centric Engineering journal and Ships and Offshore Structures. He has generated a range of products from his research, mainly focused on decarbonisation in Shipping.

Kevin Daffey FIMarEST

VP Governmental Engineering, Rolls-Royce Solutions

Kevin Daffey is a Director at Rolls-Royce Solutions UK and Servowatch Systems Ltd, a Chair of Board of Trustees at the IMarEST, a former Chair of the Marine Electrical Control Systems Safety (MECSS) SIG and was the 118^th President for the IMarEST. 

Helen Oldridge CMarEng MIMarEST

Head of Scientific Engineering, National Oceanography Centre

Helen is the National Marine Facilities Head of Scientific Engineering, at the National Oceanography Centre. She is responsible for the operation and development of the National Marine Equipment Pool, the technicians supporting the delivery of the research expedition programme, and co-author of the Technology Roadmap. Her background is in systems and design engineering, with 3 years in the commercial design and manufacturing sector, and 12 years as marine engineer in the Royal Navy

Noel Tomlinson

Global Business Development, BMT

Noel Is responsible for global business development & growth of the commercial maritime sector for leading international design, engineering and risk management consultancy, BMT. He is an active member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST) with over 20 years' experience in the maritime industry, working within both the defence and commercial sectors.

He is Vice Chair of the SMI Commercial Maritime Group Council and Chair of the Workboat Working Group, facilitating growth and development within the UK supply chain for the design, build and upgrade of domestic maritime transport. With a passion for the future of maritime, Noel is active on many industry/government initiatives to grow the UK marine industry and promote safer, cleaner and more fuel-efficient shipping for the future.

Sahan Abeysekara IEng IMarEng MIMarEST

Principal Specialist - Environment, Technical Directorate, Lloyds Register

Sahan is an experience Marine professional with extensive experience on marine environmental technology, marine engineering and marine strategy development. He represents IACS at IMO for Marine Biosecurity.  LR representative to Global Industry Alliance of IMO-GEF-UNDP GloFouling partnership-. Sahan is an author and speaker representing LR in various conferences and workshops. Sahan is leading Environmental policy at Lloyd’s Register’s Technical Directorate. Responsible for strategy and implementation for future environmental regulations, provide ‘thought leadership’ to the industry. He was a senior marine engineer sailing on board ship before join LR. Sahan is a Fellow at Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, Engineering council and member of IMarEST. Sahan holds Master’s degree from City University, London.

Edward Walker

Environmental Specialist, Xodus

Ed is a Marine Energy specialist with specific experience in the assessment, consenting and development of marine-based infrastructure projects, including subsea transmission and offshore wind.

A Chartered Environmentalist, Chartered Marine Technologist and Chartered Water & Environment Manager, Ed has a range of experience supporting the development of marine infrastructure, including several Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects.

Ed’s experience encompasses subsea cables, offshore wind, CCUS, nuclear new build and a range of other coastal energy projects. Ed has experience managing multidisciplinary EIA teams and has led the environmental assessment of several subsea cable projects, as well as a new east coast offshore wind export cable route. Previous experience includes acting as Marine PM for a major new electricity reinforcement between Scotland and England. Alongside this, Ed has client-side experience (this includes acting as marine consents officer for a UK transmission owner on two major subsea cable projects).

Outside of EIA, Ed has experience providing support throughout the project development cycle from feasibility, strategic optioneering and routeing & siting through to consent preparation, submission and post-consent discharge. Prior to working in consultancy, Ed benefits from several years of experience working within a UK marine regulator – the MMO.

Alongside his day-to-day role, Ed is a regional IEMA chair / marine development steering group chair and sits on the regional Energy Institute board. Ed is a regular contributor to professional journals across IEMA, IMarEST, CIWEM and the Energy Institute focusing particularly on marine energy.

Professor Ralph Rayner FIMarEST

Professorial Research Fellow, Grantham Research Institute and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Co-chair IMarEST Operational Oceanography SIG

Ralph is a Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of Statistics at LSE as well as holding a position with The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  He is a fellow of the Institute for Marine Engineering, Science and Technology, the Society for Underwater Technology, the Marine technology Society, the Royal Meteorological Society and the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Ralph’s academic background is in ocean science and technology.  Throughout his career he has worked at the interface between the public and private sectors in meeting the need for monitoring of the ocean environment in support of understanding climate change, the use of ocean resources and the protection of the marine environment.  He is a former chair of the IOC/UNESCO Global Ocean Observing System Steering Committee and currently serves on the advisory bodies of a number on leading ocean science research organisations, including Plymouth Marine Laboratory and the Schmidt Ocean Institute.  He is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Operational Oceanography and is a founding trustee of the Rising Seas Institute.

Professor Ralph Rayner FIMarEST

Professorial Research Fellow, Grantham Research Institute and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Co-chair IMarEST Operational Oceanography SIG

Ralph is a Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of Statistics at LSE as well as holding a position with The U.S. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.  He is a fellow of the Institute for Marine Engineering, Science and Technology, the Society for Underwater Technology, the Marine technology Society, the Royal Meteorological Society and the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce.

Ralph’s academic background is in ocean science and technology.  Throughout his career he has worked at the interface between the public and private sectors in meeting the need for monitoring of the ocean environment in support of understanding climate change, the use of ocean resources and the protection of the marine environment.  He is a former chair of the IOC/UNESCO Global Ocean Observing System Steering Committee and currently serves on the advisory bodies of a number on leading ocean science research organisations, including Plymouth Marine Laboratory and the Schmidt Ocean Institute.  He is Editor in Chief of the Journal of Operational Oceanography and is a founding trustee of the Rising Seas Institute.

Dr Richard Bucknall

Head of Department for Mechanical Engineering, UCL, Maritime Research and Innovation UK

Professor Richard Bucknall’s career has been spent in the marine industry and academia.  He began his career at BP Shipping and subsequently with Ministry of Defence before joining UCL as a Research Fellow.  At UCL he led the Marine Research Group (2008-2014), became Director of Research for Mechanical Engineering (2014-2019), Vice Dean for Research (2019-2023) and Head of Department for Mechanical Engineering (2022-now).  His research focus has spanned several areas of maritime engineering science but more recently decarbonisation of the maritime sector.  He has graduated 28 PhD students from across the world, has over 250 published articles, and has been awarded the IMAREST Danny Medal twice.  He is an honorary member of the Royal Corps of Naval Constructors, past editor in chief of the Journal of Marine Engineering and Technology, and is currently a Visiting Professor at three internationally leading universities.

Claudene Sharp-Patel CMarTech FIMarEST

Global Technical Director, Marine and Offshore, Lloyds Register

Claudene joined the marine industry over 30 years ago, having wide experience in maritime, shipping, salvage/MCI, upstream oil and Gas, and wind installation/MWS, Terminal operations, assurance and Oil and Gas/renewable industries in various roles and senior management positions. Claudene started her career as a sea-going Marine Engineering with BHP on dry-bulk carriers, ROROs, Container Vessels and Chemical tankers, transferring onto Oil and LNG vessels with Shell UK and primarily with BP Shipping. However, never one to stop during leave periods continued building experience on General cargo vessels and passenger ships.  Although holding a Bachelor of Technology (Marine Engineering) and Combined Chief Engineer (Motor and Steam), Claudene continued studying obtaining an MBA in Maritime Law and Logistics Management. 

Although Claudene’s background is technical, her training in her shore career in Shipping companies and energy companies support the understanding of shipping, terminal operations/activities and marine activities, has assisted seeing these operations holistically and impactfully.  Claudene’s more recent roles as Global Technical Director Lloyd’s Register, and Shell Australia Prelude (Prelude Marine Terminal Coordinator) further adds to her understanding of current Marine and Offshore roles, activities and operations.  Claudene’s current role as Global Technical Director for Lloyds Register allows an input in the strategy and technical requirements for the industry both legislated or required through IMO/IACS and supporting customers and the industry find safe technical solutions within Decarbonisation, Digitalisation, Marine safety assurance and Offshore Safety Assurance.

Claudene is a Fellow of IMarEST and served for 6 years as Vice President and culminating as Vice Chair of Technical Leadership Board of IMarEST.  Claudene was previously a registered consultant to IMO, and has been continuously active within OCIMF in several groups/working groups including Representative at GPC, Vice Chairman of OCIMF Technical Group, and member of SIRE Focus Group.  These experiences bringing a wide understanding of incidents, consequences, legislation, regulations and implementation.

Dr Lucy Gillam

Transdisciplinary researcher on Resilient Delta Clean Fuels for Shipping project,

Dr Lucy Gilliam: For over 20 years, Dr Lucy Gilliam has been immersed in environmental science and policy, specializing in science-based policies and impactful campaigns from governmental, research, and NGO perspectives. Her expertise includes international transport, ocean governance, and ecosystem-based management, particularly in the shipping and aviation sectors. She has worked with NGOs like Transport & Environment and Seas at Risk on EU and IMO shipping policies, contributed to decarbonizing maritime activities, and participated in international UN meetings. Currently, Lucy consults on the Clean Fuels for shipping project within the Resilient Delta program at TU Delft and Erasmus University.

Sahan Abeysekara IEng IMarEng MIMarEST

Principal Specialist - Environment, Technical Directorate, Lloyds Register

Sahan is an experience Marine professional with extensive experience on marine environmental technology, marine engineering and marine strategy development. He represents IACS at IMO for Marine Biosecurity.  LR representative to Global Industry Alliance of IMO-GEF-UNDP GloFouling partnership-. Sahan is an author and speaker representing LR in various conferences and workshops. Sahan is leading Environmental policy at Lloyd’s Register’s Technical Directorate. Responsible for strategy and implementation for future environmental regulations, provide ‘thought leadership’ to the industry. He was a senior marine engineer sailing on board ship before join LR. Sahan is a Fellow at Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, Engineering council and member of IMarEST. Sahan holds Master’s degree from City University, London.

Richard Partridge C.Eng. FIMarEST

Chief of Naval Systems, Rolls-Royce Naval

Richard Partridge is the Chief of Naval Systems at Rolls-Royce and has worked for the company since 1999. He provides leadership in the system selection, concept design and optimization of power and propulsion systems for surface warship programmes. Examples have included the Royal Navy's Queen Elizabeth Class Aircraft Carrier, the US Navy's USS Freedom class Littoral Combat Ship (Monohull) and DDG-1000 Zumwalt Class destroyer, and the Republic of Korea Navy’s FFX-II Daegu-class frigate.

Richard worked for the Energy sector of Alstom Gas Turbines between 1996 and 1999, and prior to that spent six and a half years in the Marine Engineering branch in the Royal Navy, including three years serving on an Anti-Submarine Warfare Frigate.

Richard is a Chartered Engineer and a Fellow of the Institution of Marine Engineers, Scientists and Technologists (IMarEST). He is an alumni of Plymouth University (B.Eng in Mechanical engineering, 1996) and University College London (M.Sc in Marine engineering – Electrical option, 2001).

Shaun White

Managing Director, Foreship UK

Shaun White heads Foreship UK, a subsidiary of the Finnish naval architecture, marine engineering, and project management services specialist for shipbuilding, conversion, and refurbishment, Foreship Ltd.

Shaun has held several leading positions during his long career in the Maritime Industry, focusing on the issues that have become pivotal for the future of shipping, including alternative fuels, electrification, hybrid solutions, and energy infrastructure systems.

He is deeply committed to leveraging his expertise from the commercial shipping, cruise, passenger, and defense sectors to establish strategic industry partnerships, deliver pioneering solutions, overcome industry challenges, and advance the sustainable shipping technologies of tomorrow.

Bev Mackenzie CSci CMarSci CMarSci(Oceanography) FIMarEST

Head of intergovernmental Engagement, BIMCO

I am a knowledgeable marine professional, with significant Executive and Non-Executive Board level experience. I have technical expertise in and perhaps more importantly, a passion for marine environmental sciences and there application across disciplines and sectors to inform evidence-based decision making. I love to share my knowledge (and opinions) and I try to share my favourite publications (my own and of others) and presentations on this platform. I neither grew up nor live near the sea but am passionate about all things marine- from the ships that sail to the whales that navigate below. I am often to be spotted on a beach with a bag ready to pick up any litter I can find - and am constantly obsessing over the tides, currents and what weather the sea might be bringing our way.

I am also passionate about equity and inclusion. I am always happy to discuss EDI projects and initiatives in the shipping and wider maritime sector.

Ashley Noseworthy

President / CEO, Edgewise Environmental Ltd

Ashley Noseworthy, CEO and founder of Edgewise Environmental, a Newfoundland-based marine consultancy focusing on marine mammals, seabirds and anthropogenic noise mitigation solutions. Holding an MSc from Newcastle University and a BSc from Memorial University, she spent over a decade at sea, contributing to major energy projects in West Africa, the Arctic, Eastern Canada and the Arabian Gulf. Recognized for her achievements, she received the 2022 NLOWE Trailblazer Award and was listed among the Top 100 Inspirational Female Founders of Ocean and Energy in 2023 by The Ocean Opportunity Lab. Ashley is involved in various national and international boards, including Oceans Advance and the IMarEST Marine Mammal Special Interest Group, advocating for women in STEM. She serves as an advisor for the Destination Canada Sustainability Task Force and the Women in Resources Advisory Committee for the Minister of Industry, Energy, and Technology, embodying a commitment to breaking boundaries in non-traditional roles.

Niru Dorrian CSci CMarSci FIMarEST

Co-Chair Marine Mammals SIG, IMarEST

Niru is an offshore ecologist and marine mammal specialist with 20 years of experience over multiple international marine projects specialising in ecological project management, mitigation & monitoring, wildlife surveys, fauna rescue and conservation. He is also a Co-Founding Director for the not-for-profit marine conservation and education organisation Whalefish and has served on the Executive board of the MMOA since 2015. Niru has contributed extensively to marine fauna mitigation guidelines and protection plans, rescue and disentanglement protocols and science communication through multiple publications and media projects.

Anthony Linden

Area Manager, DNV

A British national, Linden gained a BSc (Hons) in International Transport from Southampton Institute. He spent his early career working for CP Ships UK Ltd for 10 years latterly as Trade Director working in the UK, Hong Kong, and India. Following that he spent three years as Asia-Europe/Mediterranean Product Management Director, for Hapag-Lloyd (Asia) Pte Ltd in Singapore. He was then appointed President of UASC (India) Pvt Ltd, based in Mumbai and responsible for all United Arab Shipping Co activities in India. Linden returned to Singapore in 2011 to take up the role of Director, Container Ship - Operations & Logistics with DNV.

Dr Anand Hiremath

Head of the SSOR, GMS

Works closely with selected yards to ensure compliance of the guidelines established by the Hong Kong Convention (HKC) and European Union Ship Recycling Regulation (EUSRR) for Safe and Environmentally Sound Recycling of Ships. In addition, responsible for the development and implementation of GMS’ Responsible Ship Recycling Program.

Professor Adam Sobey

Program Director, Turing Institute

Professor Adam Sobey is Programme Director of Data-Centric Engineering at The Alan Turing Institute and Professor of Data-Centric Engineering in the Maritime Engineering group at the University of Southampton. He is also a Non-Executive Director at Theyr Ltd, a MetOcean and Voyage Optimisation Software provider, and at AQ, provide tools for Digital Assurance.

He completed his degree in Astronautics at the University of Southampton in 2006 and his PhD in the Maritime Engineering group in 2010 using AI in the design of leisure boats. From 2009 he managed the Lloyd’s Register/Ministry of Defence Centre of Excellence in Marine Structures at Southampton, developing new techniques to model damaged ships. This research was incorporated into Lloyd’s Register’s design guidance and in 2015 he was awarded the Royal Institution of Naval Architect’s Jeom Paik Award for stochastic analysis of ship structures. In 2014 he became a Lloyd’s Register Educational Trust funded Research Fellow with 50% of his time seconded to the Institute of High Performance Computing in Singapore, developing novel algorithms in Evolutionary Computation. In 2015 he was a co-Investigator for the University of Southampton Lloyd’s Register Foundation University Technology Centre in “Ship Design for Enhanced Environmental Performance”. He became a lecturer in the Maritime Engineering group in 2018 and was asked to start a theme in Marine and Maritime within the Data-Centric Engineering programme at The Alan Turing Institute in 2019 with Gabriel Weymouth. He became the first Professor in Data-Centric Engineering in 2022 and Programme Director for Data-Centric Engineering in 2023.

He is an Executive Editor for the Data-Centric Engineering journal and Ships and Offshore Structures. He has generated a range of products from his research, mainly focused on decarbonisation in Shipping.

Kevin Daffey FIMarEST

VP Governmental Engineering, Rolls-Royce Solutions

Kevin Daffey is a Director at Rolls-Royce Solutions UK and Servowatch Systems Ltd, a Chair of Board of Trustees at the IMarEST, a former Chair of the Marine Electrical Control Systems Safety (MECSS) SIG and was the 118^th President for the IMarEST. 

Helen Oldridge CMarEng MIMarEST

Head of Scientific Engineering, National Oceanography Centre

Helen is the National Marine Facilities Head of Scientific Engineering, at the National Oceanography Centre. She is responsible for the operation and development of the National Marine Equipment Pool, the technicians supporting the delivery of the research expedition programme, and co-author of the Technology Roadmap. Her background is in systems and design engineering, with 3 years in the commercial design and manufacturing sector, and 12 years as marine engineer in the Royal Navy

Noel Tomlinson

Global Business Development, BMT

Noel Is responsible for global business development & growth of the commercial maritime sector for leading international design, engineering and risk management consultancy, BMT. He is an active member of the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST) with over 20 years' experience in the maritime industry, working within both the defence and commercial sectors.

He is Vice Chair of the SMI Commercial Maritime Group Council and Chair of the Workboat Working Group, facilitating growth and development within the UK supply chain for the design, build and upgrade of domestic maritime transport. With a passion for the future of maritime, Noel is active on many industry/government initiatives to grow the UK marine industry and promote safer, cleaner and more fuel-efficient shipping for the future.

Sahan Abeysekara IEng IMarEng MIMarEST

Principal Specialist - Environment, Technical Directorate, Lloyds Register

Sahan is an experience Marine professional with extensive experience on marine environmental technology, marine engineering and marine strategy development. He represents IACS at IMO for Marine Biosecurity.  LR representative to Global Industry Alliance of IMO-GEF-UNDP GloFouling partnership-. Sahan is an author and speaker representing LR in various conferences and workshops. Sahan is leading Environmental policy at Lloyd’s Register’s Technical Directorate. Responsible for strategy and implementation for future environmental regulations, provide ‘thought leadership’ to the industry. He was a senior marine engineer sailing on board ship before join LR. Sahan is a Fellow at Institute of Chartered Shipbrokers, Engineering council and member of IMarEST. Sahan holds Master’s degree from City University, London.

Edward Walker

Environmental Specialist, Xodus

Ed is a Marine Energy specialist with specific experience in the assessment, consenting and development of marine-based infrastructure projects, including subsea transmission and offshore wind.

A Chartered Environmentalist, Chartered Marine Technologist and Chartered Water & Environment Manager, Ed has a range of experience supporting the development of marine infrastructure, including several Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects.

Ed’s experience encompasses subsea cables, offshore wind, CCUS, nuclear new build and a range of other coastal energy projects. Ed has experience managing multidisciplinary EIA teams and has led the environmental assessment of several subsea cable projects, as well as a new east coast offshore wind export cable route. Previous experience includes acting as Marine PM for a major new electricity reinforcement between Scotland and England. Alongside this, Ed has client-side experience (this includes acting as marine consents officer for a UK transmission owner on two major subsea cable projects).

Outside of EIA, Ed has experience providing support throughout the project development cycle from feasibility, strategic optioneering and routeing & siting through to consent preparation, submission and post-consent discharge. Prior to working in consultancy, Ed benefits from several years of experience working within a UK marine regulator – the MMO.

Alongside his day-to-day role, Ed is a regional IEMA chair / marine development steering group chair and sits on the regional Energy Institute board. Ed is a regular contributor to professional journals across IEMA, IMarEST, CIWEM and the Energy Institute focusing particularly on marine energy.