Category Archives for "session"

Vice-Rector for Research and International Cooperation
Odesa National Maritime University

Iryna Savelieva is the Vice-Rector for Research and International Cooperation at Odesa National Maritime University, where she oversees international projects, scientific development, and institutional partnerships. With extensive experience in maritime education and university governance, she leads initiatives focused on youth employability, sustainable transport, port security, and digital transformation in higher education.

Iryna is the coordinator of the EU-funded project Empowering Blue and Smart Transformation of the Black Sea Basin (Blue Gates), which focuses on fostering innovation and collaboration in the blue economy sector.

She is actively engaged in promoting the participation of women in maritime sectors and advocates for rebuilding Ukraine’s coastal and port systems with a strong emphasis on equity and resilience.

Assistant Professor (Research/Ocean Sustainability, Governance & Management)
World Maritime University

Dr. Aspasia Pastra has been appointed Assistant Professor at the World Maritime University-Sasakawa Global Ocean Institute in Malmö, Sweden. She is extensively involved in cutting-edge research and teaching focused on ocean and maritime governance, policy frameworks, and the role of emerging technologies in addressing the triple planetary crisis. Dr. Pastra’s work lies at the intersection of ocean governance, industry, and science. She has actively participated in high-impact EU-funded and governmental research projects that address critical challenges in ocean governance and technological innovation.

Dr. Pastra holds a B.Sc. in Public Administration from Panteion University of Social and Political Sciences in Greece, an MBA from Cardiff University in the UK, and an MSc in Maritime Administration from the World Maritime University. She earned her PhD in Corporate Governance from Brunel University in London. She was also appointed as a postdoctoral fellow in the European Union Horizon 2020 programme-funded project titled Overcoming Regulatory Barriers for Service Robotics in an Ocean Industry Context.

Nippon Foundation Professorial Chair in Gender and Innovation; Head, Maritime Education & Training
World Maritime University

Professor Momoko Kitada is a former seafarer and was awarded a PhD in Social Science from Cardiff University, UK. She joined WMU in 2011 and serves as Full Professor and Head of Maritime Education and Training (MET). She coordinates and teaches in other MSc specializations, including Maritime Energy Management (MEM), as well as the Postgraduate Diploma in Maritime Energy and the Summer Academy on Maritime Decarbonization.

Dr. Kitada leads WMU’s collaboration efforts with the International Maritime Organization (IMO) in terms of women’s integration in the maritime sector. She is a certified Gender Audit Facilitator as well as a certified Monitoring and Evaluation expert. She works for IMO during the joint evaluation and internal audit of the IMO’s gender activities.

Dr. Kitada actively incorporates gender perspectives in her interdisciplinary teaching in maritime subjects, including maritime education and training, maritime energy management, sustainable development, capacity building, digitalization and innovation, and research methodology. She has 18-year research experience in gender equality in the maritime and ocean sectors. Dr. Kitada has a good track record of publications and serves as academic reviewers for scientific journals and referees of project fundings in various research institutions.

Research Associate
World Maritime University

Dr. Renis Auma Ojwala works as a Post-doctoral Research Associate at the World Maritime University (WMU), where she focuses on fostering crew sustainability in the maritime industry. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Applied Aquatic Science from Egerton University in Kenya, a Master of Science in Limnology and Wetland Management from a joint program between BOKU University (Austria), Egerton University (Kenya), and UNESCO-IHE Delft (The Netherlands), and a PhD in Maritime Affairs from WMU.

As a proud WMU alumnus, Renis has dedicated her work to advancing gender equality in ocean science, particularly in Kenya. She played a pivotal role in the “Empowering Women for the United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development” project, demonstrating her commitment to equity in ocean science fields. Renis also contributed to the development of Gender Strategic and Action Plan, "Towards Gender Equality in Ocean Science and Governance," a visionary framework aimed at fostering inclusivity and promoting a more equitable, sustainable ocean in the future.

Her research spans critical areas in aquatic and maritime sciences, with a strong emphasis on diversity and gender equality in ocean science, maritime, and fisheries sectors. With her international academic background and interdisciplinary expertise, Renis offers fresh perspectives on global oceanic challenges, driving innovative solutions that promote gender parity and sustainable development in the maritime industry. Showcasing her research expertise, Renis has authored multiple studies in renowned, peer-reviewed international journals.

Associate Professor; Head of Maritime Law and Policy Specialization
World Maritime University

Dr. María Carolina Romero Lares has been a member of the Faculty of Law at the World Maritime University since 2011 and currently serves as the Head of the Maritime Law and Policy Specialization. She received her Law degree from the Andrés Bello Catholic University in Venezuela and an LL.M. degree from Tulane University in the U.S. before earning a Ph.D. with honors (cum laude) from Leibniz Universität Hannover in Germany.

Dr. Romero’s academic career began in 2005 when she joined the Venezuelan Maritime University as a part-time professor. In addition to her teaching duties, she served as Coordinator at the International Affairs Office of the Venezuelan Maritime Administration. She later became the Head of that office and represented her country at several international meetings at the International Maritime Organization and the International Oil Pollution Funds in London.

With firsthand professional experience both as a delegate at international forums representing her homeland and in the classroom, Dr. Romero brings a unique perspective to the Maritime Law and Policy Specialization. She lectures on International Organizations and Maritime Conventions, the Law of the Sea, and the Protection of the Marine Environment and oversees these courses. In addition, she organizes the annual Moot Court Competition, which focuses on current issues of the Law of the Sea, along with a field study trip to The Hague and Hamburg. She has also been invited to lecture at the IFLOS Summer Academy at ITLOS in Hamburg, Germany.

Dr. Romero places great importance on cooperation activities with Latin America and the Caribbean and has already organized two regional conferences there: the “Maritime and Port Sectors in the Americas: Challenges and Opportunities in Light of the SDGs” conference in Lima, Peru in 2017 and the “Second Regional Conference: Maritime Transport and Ocean Policies: Regional Perspectives for the Americas” in Veracruz, Mexico in 2019.

President
Fundación Náutica Marítima del Perú

Captain Jesus Menacho has worked for over 20 years at the General Directorate of Captaincies and Coastguards – Maritime Authority of Peru. Before his retirement, he held the positions of Director of Surveys, Audits and Port State Control Inspections; Chief of Staff at Coastguard Operations Command, Director of International Affairs and IMO, and Director of Policies, Regulations and Integrated Management Systems. Besides, he served as a Staff Officer, Second Commander, and Commander of several Coast Guard, Hydrographic, and Naval units.

He has further experience as an IMO IMSAS Auditor, Flag State Statutory Inspector, Port State Control Officer, and ISPS/ISM Lead Auditor. He has been recognised as part of the list of competent persons maintained by the IMO Secretary-General under the STCW Convention. He also has vast experience in seafarer matters, as an Independent Auditor for maritime administrations under the STCW Convention and as a maritime inspector and International Instructor of the ILO Maritime Labour Convention (MLC 2006).

He has a wealth of teaching experience, including lecturing on maritime international affairs and IMO issues for more than 15 years in different nautical academies and universities, acting as Professor of the Special Course on “Naval Surveillance Operations at Sea” at the International Institute of Humanitarian Law of San Remo (IIHL), and Permanent Professor of the Maritime Law Specialisation Programme at the University of Piura (UDEP). The IMO recognises him as an International Trainer and External Consultant under the Integrated Technical Cooperation Programme (ITCP).

In ocean affairs and Law of the Sea, he was Peru’s delegate to the 2023 Conference on the Agreement under the UNCLOS on the Conservation and Sustainable Use of Marine Biological Diversity of Areas beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement), in New York.

He served as Naval Attaché to the Peruvian Embassy in Singapore and Indonesia, and Liaison Officer at the Information Fusion Centre of the Singapore Navy, under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

He is the founder and President of the Nautical Maritime Foundation of Peru, whose primary purpose is maritime education, promoting, strengthening, and disseminating maritime consciousness and internalising it as an identity of all Peruvians.

Bachelor and Graduate in Maritime and Naval Sciences from the Naval Academy of Peru in 1996. Specialised in Coastguard and Captaincies, and Hydrography and Navigation. Graduated from the Command and General Staff Program at Naval War College. Master of Science in Maritime Affairs at the World Maritime University (WMU) and Specialist in International Maritime Law at the Spanish Maritime Institute.

Maritime Lead Campaigner
International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF)

Kulsoom Jafri is a dedicated advocate for workers’ rights in the global maritime industry, working alongside ITF-affiliated trade unions to secure fair working conditions. Her campaigns focus on key issues such as just transition, equality, health and safety, and supply chain organising, ensuring that seafarers and inland navigation workers are protected from exploitation. The ITF challenges shipping employers and authorities to uphold higher standards, while holding states and international regulators accountable for employment protections. Through her work, Kulsoom fights to reshape an industry often marked by inequality, pushing for systemic change that prioritizes dignity and justice for maritime workers worldwide.

Associate Professor
Barcelona School of Nautical Studies – Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Spain

Claudia Barahona-Fuentes is an associate professor at the Barcelona School of Nautical Studies, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC), where she participates in different school management committees and where for ten years (2007-2017) she also developed different internationalization tasks as Vice-Dean of International Relations. At present, she is the gender equality officer among whose tasks there is the management of the Commission for Gender Equality. She is also actively engaged in teacher training courses and activities for mainstreaming gender in teaching at the university.

Her research interests encompass, among others, gender mainstreaming in Maritime Education and Training (MET) and the role of women in the maritime sector. She holds a PhD in Gender Mainstreaming in Maritime Education and Training (MET) from the UPC (2023) and she is also a member of the research group SOCSTEM, which aims to promote the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) disciplines from their social side. Hence, she has participated in different gender mainstreaming projects at her university and has coauthored different articles and guides to mainstream gender in teaching and research. Last year, she received the 27th UPC Award for Quality in University Teaching 2024 for the coordination of a project to incorporate the gender perspective competence in maritime studies.

Lecturer (Research/Ocean Sustainability, Governance & Management)
World Maritime University

Dr. Kathleen Auld Yildiz joined the World Maritime University in September 2021. She is a lecturer within WMU’s Master of Maritime Affairs programme on Ocean Sustainability, Governance and Management, and the Project Officer for the CAPFISH Project, which aims to build knowledge and capacity to combat IUU fishing in developing countries and small island states. Before joining WMU, Dr. Auld Yildiz held Research Assistant positions in the field of environment and trade at the University of Melbourne and University of Cape Town, while completing her LLM and PhD degrees.

Prior to starting her LLM, she completed legal articles in Cape Town and is an admitted Attorney, Notary and Conveyancer of the High Court of South Africa. Dr. Auld Yildiz’s research focuses primarily on sustainable fisheries and trade. Her particular research interests include IUU fishing, socio-economic aspects of fishing and ocean governance, and fisheries subsidies.

Managing Director, Unlocking Oceans Economy
Founder, Global Maritime Youth
Womaritime Experts

A trailblazer in the maritime industry, Captain Londy is dedicated to unlocking Africa’s ocean economy. With over 16 years of experience, her background spans Maritime Studies, serving as a former ship navigational officer, and earning an advanced dredging qualification from the Netherlands IHC she further assumed an industry-shaking role as a former Executive Maritime Compliance Manager for the national port authority South Africa. Londy is now a Managing Director at UOE (Unlocking Oceans Economy) and Founder of Global Maritime Youth, all of which continues to echo her well-known title “The BLAQMERMAID”

For her array of impactful work, Londy is globally recognised with multiple awards, including the Forbes 30 Under 50 honoree and Paris’s Veuve Clicquot Bold Woman Award, amongst many others. Currently seating as a non-executive board member for Mercy ships south Africa, Londy serves on various boards in the blue economy and influential organizations like Mercy within leadership, women, and youth spheres ensuring continuous development of Africa’s maritime professions through advocacy, training, and awareness as well as strengthening the competitiveness and employment creating potential for Africans..

As a leader, mother, and wife herself, Londy’s journey has equipped her with the ability to focus on providing sustainable tools for:

• Corporates – To lead diversity and inclusion.
• Women – Mentors women to thrive and assume captaincy of their lives.
• Youth – Her zest for a colourful life is so contagious the youth gets cultivated to reach for the endless horizons, particularly when it comes to self-employment, creating opportunities under Unlocking Oceans Economy and Global Maritime Youth initiatives.

As seen on her most visited talks like the World Maritime University “Claim Your Captaincy” , Forbes Leading Women Africa with her piercing phrase “I chose not to be Rose from the Titanic, I chose to Captain the Titanic” and through her popular TEDx Talk “Anchors Aweigh, No Rest for The First” This Blaqmermaid sure is making waves on land.