AAPA is pleased to announce the following changes to its staff organization.

 

Shannon McLeod has been promoted to Vice President of Member Services effective July 1. The scope of Member Services is being expanded to include membership onboarding, retention, and experience, as well as the management of AAPA’s database and client relationship management (CRM) system. In line with Shannon’s promotion and the expanded scope of Member Services, Liz Mancini and Imani Poindexter will shift over to Member Services from Business Development. Simultaneously, Liz Mancini is being promoted to Senior Manager of Member Services, also effective July 1. The full scope of the Member Services department now includes professional and workforce development, research and data analysis, oversight of the Foundation for Seaports of the Americas, membership experience, and database and CRM management.

 

Kevin Traver will continue to lead AAPA’s business development efforts and the above-mentioned change will provide Kevin with more bandwidth to focus on growing our membership and sponsorship ranks, as well as staging first class seminars and events, including the Annual Convention. Joining Kevin’s Business Development team on July 28 will be Greta Casey as Director of Membership and Sponsorship Sales. Greta is a native of Cincinnati, and a graduate of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and comes to AAPA with solid sales and marketing experience as an Account Executive with The Gartner Group, and most recently as a Relationship Manager with Booz Allen.

 

AAPA is strengthening its capacity in the finance and administration area and is currently vetting candidates for the position of Vice President of Finance and Administration. The upgrading of capacity is reflective of our rapid growth trajectory in recent years and the corresponding large increase in the number of financial transactions we are handling. Moreover, it also correlates with a very active in-office environment that has taken root here in the Washington, D.C., office post pandemic and the corresponding need for more robust office administration oversight. In line with this, we are also recruiting an Operations and Administration Associate to join our team and expect to finalize that hire within the next week or so.

 

AAPA welcomes recommendations from members for the Vice President of Finance and Administration role. Meanwhile, please join us in congratulating Shannon and Liz on their promotions and in welcoming Greta Casey to the AAPA team.

AAPA will be launching an upgrade to its database system that will significantly enhance member experience, improve efficiency, and streamline management processes through a secure, cloud-based platform. Please note that the implementation and testing process will take place from Monday, July 10, through Sunday, July 18. While this upgrade is in progress, you will still be able to register for events. However, updates to member information and dues payments cannot be made during this period. Access to the AAPA App will also be temporarily unavailable during this time.

 

AAPA will continue to keep you informed and appreciates your patience as we work to enhance your membership experience. For questions or assistance, contact Liz Mancini, Senior Manager of Member Services.

The ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles will give a progress update on the San Pedro Bay Ports Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP) from 10:00 a.m. to noon PT on Tuesday, July 25. Open to the public, the virtual meeting will include updates on implementing the Clean Truck Fund Rate, the progress of the ports’ Technology Advancement Program projects, and the state of efforts to implement Green Shipping corridors.

The Port of Everett Commission awarded a $13 million construction contract to Burlington-based Interwest Construction Inc. to build out the next phase of infrastructure at the Millwright District — the second and largest phase of the Port’s Waterfront Place mixed-use development. The project includes constructing the Millwright Loop Roads, connecting roadways and infrastructure.

The Duluth Seaway Port Authority and its terminal operations on Rice’s Point ranked among the nation’s top performers in the recently released Green Marine 2022 environmental performance report, posting a 4.0 score on Green Marine’s five-point scale — an improvement from 3.8 in 2021. The overall average for port authority participants in 2022 was 3.09.

Crowley’s advancement of innovation and startup ventures earned the U.S.-based company the 2023 Supply Chain Corporate Innovation Partner Award from Plug and Play, a global innovation platform. Crowley has enhanced venture opportunities and created partnerships based on leveraging technologies to promote greater supply chain performance.

Officials from the ports of Los Angeles and Nagoya, Japan, have signed a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to broaden cooperation on key sustainability and operational efficiency initiatives, including port community systems and digital supply chain information sharing, zero-emission vehicle and equipment testing, and a new Green Shipping Corridor between the two ports. The new three-year agreement builds upon the 2020 MOU.

The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey is working to reduce diesel truck emissions at its facilities. Funding through the Port Authority’s Truck Replacement Program offers eligible applicants grant funds toward the purchase of a newer, cleaner truck to replace their older, higher emitting truck.

The Port of Oakland announced the Oakland Harbor Turning Basins Widening Navigation Study has reached another milestone. The comment period for the second draft of the Integrated Feasibility Report (IFR) closed on June 16, signaling the beginning of the next phase of the proposed project.

The Northwest Seaport Alliance (NWSA), the marine cargo partnership between the ports of Seattle and Tacoma, applauds the launch of the Puget Sound Zero-Emissions Truck Collaborative. The purpose of the collaborative is to develop a strategy for a just and equitable transition to zero-emission drayage trucking in the Puget Sound region by 2050 or sooner.

Electronics Officer, U.S. Merchant Marine, Nationwide; American Radio Association