Jack Buono (left), President & CEO of SeaRiver Maritime, speaks with students from the Center for Logistics & Transportation Policy of the University of Houston at NAMEPA's "Pathways to Sustainability" conference

On February 5th, NAMEPA member, SeaRiver Maritime, hosted NAMEPA's "Pathways to Sustainability" conference at the ExxonMobil Campus in Spring, TX.  Over 100 professionals from 40+ maritime companies discussed and explored the future of maritime technologies, energy, emissions, roles, and more.  Many thanks to SeaRiver Maritime for hosting this successful learning and networking event.

NAMEPA intern and MMA Cadet, Leah Burns, teaches 5th and 6th graders in Pasadena, TX about marine debris and the maritime industry.

While in Houston for an industry event, NAMEPA reached out to two area schools to share our educational lessons about the maritime industry and marine environment.  Dawona Miles of the Port of Houston (a member of NAMEPA), arranged for us to visit Carter Lomax Middle School and Jackson Middle School.

At Carter Lomax Middle School in Pasadena, NAMEPA intern and Massachusetts Maritime Academy Cadet, Leah Burns, spoke about her connection to the maritime industry to 60 students in the 5th and 6th grades.  Leah then gave them a presentation on the marine environment and led an activity on the "Top 10 Marine Debris Items".  The students (and teachers) were engaged, asking and answering questions throughout the activity.  The students went home with NAMEPA's marine debris posters in both English and Spanish.  The teachers received additional reference materials for use in future lessons. 

Students at Jackson Middle School in Houston, TX design ships that use renewable energy

We continued to Jackson Middle School in Houston to present a lesson from NAMEPA's upcoming Marine Industry Learning Guide.  Leah led 30 students in the 8th grade through a lesson on Green Ships.  The students enjoyed learning about renewable energy resources and the various types of ships.  During the activity portion of the lesson, each student was asked to design and draw a ship that uses renewable energy then write a short paragraph about the ship.  The students had to consider the type of ship and what it would carry in their designs.

 

Later that afternoon, we were able to present at the Port of Houston Partners in Maritime Education (PHPME) meeting.  This meeting was attended by teachers and staff from area K-12 schools and colleges plus other local organizations with interest in partnering to educate youth about the maritime industry.  Leah shared NAMEPA's mission to advocate, educate and activate students and communities about the maritime industry and we discussed ways to work together with PHPME. 

 

To learn more about NAMEPA's Education and Outreach program, contact Mary Hogue at m.hogue@namepa.net.

 

To learn more about NAMEPA's education materials, visit www.namepa.net/education.

Students at Wakeman Boys & Girls Club learn about Types of Ships and Parts of Boats

On February 17th and 24th, NAMEPA made presentations to the Boys and Girls Club at Wakeman in Southport, CT. Our intern from Massachusetts Maritime Academy, Leah Burns, prepared and presented educational talks to 20 students in grades 3-5 on Types of Ships and on Parts of Boats.

 

During the Types of Ships lesson, the students learned about the twelve most common types of ships then discussed and did an activity on what products each type of ship carries.

 

The Parts of Boats lesson had the students exploring each part of a boat.  The students wrapped up the lesson by building boats of their own design using Legos.  

 

The students had fun learning about ships and asked great questions. We have an ongoing relationship with Boys and Girls Clubs of America and are excited about bringing our education programs to more sites across the country in 2016!

 

For more information about our educational programs, email m.hogue@namepa.net. 

NAMEPA participated the US Power Squadron (USPS) Annual Meeting in Orlando, FL on Friday, February 19th, as an exhibitor.

 

Mary Larsen, USCGAux was NAMEPA's 'boots on the ground' as she ran the booth and spoke to visitors about our educational materials.

 

We are excited to work with the USPS in 2016 to get the word out to recreational boaters and their communities about protecting the marine environment through education!

 

For information about becoming a NAMEPA Partner, visit http://www.namepa.net/partners/

Welcome Aboard Jean & Mary

Jean Gould, NAMEPA Gulf Coast Regional Director

NAMEPA welcomes two new members to our team. 

Jean Gould is a communications and corporate affairs professional with more than 25 years-experience in the energy and maritime industries. She managed public policy and international business issues for ExxonMobil and most recently directed global communication and marketing activities for the American Bureau of Shipping.

In her role as Regional Director, she works to bring stakeholders in the Gulf Coast area together to develop strategies, policies and outreach initiatives for marine environmental protection and preservation.

Mary Hogue, NAMEPA Education and Outreach Manager

Mary Hogue has worked with environmental committees throughout southwest Connecticut. She is Chair of Fairfield's Earth Day and Fairfield Forestry Committees and a member of the Connecticut League of Conservation Voters.  She is a board member of Mill River Wetland Committee and FairPLAN (Fairfield's Protecting Land and Neighborhoods). Mary was on the development team to build a new curriculum for grades 3-5 for the Mill River science program in schools in the region. She has been involved for many years with the Connecticut Audubon Society and many other civic organizations. Mary's experience in project management and community outreach on environmental programs will bring new insight and formalize NAMEPA's education and outreach program throughout North America.