Washington Maritime Blue Welcomes New Board Members
Local maritime leaders Caitlin Hardy and Nico De Golia have been elected to the Board of Directors of Washington Maritime Blue bringing a depth of sustainable maritime industry perspectives and expertise.
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON (January 17, 2023) — Washington Maritime Blue Board of Directors elected a slate of two new board members to its roster to join an already impressive group of leaders. Caitlin Hardy and Nico De Golia bring extensive experience in the maritime industry and sustainability. Both leaders in their own right, they have been champions, advisors, and mentors to many of Maritime Blue’s programs since its inception, including serving as part of the Joint Innovation Program Committee.
Board Chair, Simon Geerlofs, Senior Advisor at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory shares, “We are a passionate group of people that care deeply about the challenges that our ocean and communities face while recognizing that the ocean is also an untapped resource for solutions if approached through the the lens and values of a sustainable Blue Economy. Caitlin and Nico, with their deep expertise and shared values, are the perfect addition to support this Cluster into its fifth year of operations”.
Caitlin Hardy is the Vice President of Programs, Americas for Kongsberg Maritime. She leads Kongsberg Maritime’s Program Management organization in the America’s with a strong focus on delivering technology differentiating solutions to customers in the region. Caitlin has worked across engineering, project management, and maritime operations for multiple industry segments and defense, including time at maritime technology start-ups. From her time as a naval architect with a focus on tugs, fishing vessels, ferries, and salvage to transitioning to heavy project management around new vessel construction and drydocking periods from LNG vessels to cruise. She is a graduate of the United States Naval Academy with a B.S. of Naval Architecture and holds an MBA from the University of Washington. Caitlin currently sits on the Board of Directors for WISTA USA and the Women Offshore Advisory Board.
Nico De Golia is the Senior Sustainability Manager focused on driving towards Microsoft’s sustainability goals of net-negative carbon emissions, zero waste, and water positivity for transportation, warehousing, and packaging within the Cloud Supply by the end of the decade. Before joining Microsoft, Nico worked as the Global Director of Sustainability for a large U.S. Maritime company, as well as for a global non-profit consultancy as their SME on sustainable freight and logistics. Nico holds an MBA in Resilient Business Management & ESG as well as an MA in International Environmental Policy with a focus on Ocean and Coastal Resource Management from the Middlebury Institute for International Studies, where he was a Fellow at the Center for the Blue Economy. Over the past few years Nico has assisted in the development of industry-leading sustainability strategy as well as a greenhouse gas accounting covering emissions for facilities, offices, vessels, and supply chain. His additional experience includes Global subject matter expertise in Blue Economy Sustainability and Supply Chains.
President & CEO, Joshua Berger shared, “Our board represents the breadth of perspective and the many stakeholders and partners that come together to form an Innovation Cluster. I am humbled by Caitlin and Nico’s dedication, depth of knowledge, and passion for our vision and mission. We are so grateful for their willingness to invest their time with our team”.
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About Washington Maritime Blue
Washington Maritime Blue is a non-profit, strategic alliance formed to accelerate innovation and sustainability in support of an inclusive blue economy. With a mission to implement Washington State’s Strategy for the Blue Economy delivered by Governor Jay Inslee’s Maritime Innovation Advisory Council, we are a partnership between industry, public sector, research & training institutions, and community organizations. Maritime Blue works to create a world-class, thriving, equitable and sustainable maritime and ocean industry through knowledge sharing, joint innovation, entrepreneurship, commercialization, business and workforce development. Learn more at https://maritimeblue.org/
Media Contact: Angel Menchaca (angel@maritimeblue.org)